One Summer's Day
by BlackStar42Roses
Summary: Yamamoto takes a wrong turn on his way to his new dorms and winds up in the Spirit World with no memory of his name and no way out. But why does the diciplinary demon look so familiar to him? Could he be Yamamoto's ticket out? Based on Spirited Away.
1. Chapter 1

One Summer's Day

8018

I'm really back to writing this time. This particular piece was inspired by Joe Hisaishi's piece _One Summer's Day_, and for those of you who don't know where this song is from, it's the opening for Hayao Miyazaki's _Spirited Away_. Awesome movie. Even better soundtracks. Anyhow. I do believe that I am coming down with the flu of sorts, and that is going to _suck_. Oh well. There isn't much dialogue in this first chapter and Hibari doesn't make an appearance until the second, but patience is a virtue. :D (yeah, right. Haha.)

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Sucks too. Like my cold. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

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><p>Chapter One<p>

Yamamoto stared at the giant brick building in front of him, frowning slightly. There just _had_ to be a mistake. There was no way this could be his new dorm. The old, towering reddish-coloured structure had paint peeling off the wooden surfaces, rust covering the drain pipes and doors that looked like nobody had opened them for years, judging by the amount of moss growing over it. Yamamoto scratched the back of his head as he unfolded the piece of paper tucked into his pocket. Scrawled messily in a leaking pen was an address:

_Vongola Residence  
>Namimori University Campus<br>8080 Nori Drive  
>Tokyo<br>Room #12_

"Whoops." Yamamoto tilted his head, holding the paper up against the sunny sky. He'd gotten off at least six blocks early, thinking that it said _Nami Drive_, not Nori. Now here he was, stuck in the middle of nowhere a little ways away from the unpaved road, with only his duffle bag and baseball bat his friends had given him as a goodbye present for moving away to University for his athletic scholarship. If he remembered correctly, the bus driver had told him that because of the development of the new main road, the bus stops had been cut down and the next ride would be at least two hours' time.

"Damn," he muttered to himself. "This sucks."

Yamamoto sighed and dropped his bag and bat onto a patch of grass on the side of the dirt road. He was going to be late for registration, but that couldn't be helped. He didn't know his way around the area, and it would be worse if he took a wrong turn and got even more lost altogether. He hummed to himself, gaze drawn back to the old building. What _was_ it doing here? This place was far from what would be deemed "civilization". It was probably abandoned. Yamamoto tapped his lip thoughtfully. He had nearly two hours to kill. Going on an expedition didn't sound too bad. Walking over, he carefully brushed to moss growing over the handles. Tugging at the large stone handles, the wood creaked loudly as Yamamoto used his weight to pull against the towering doors. A gust of wind whooshed past him into the inky blackness within.

Yamamoto peeked in, seeing nothing but darkness. Shoving his whole body against the frame, he pushed it all the way back until light flooded into the building. There was nothing interesting inside of it at all. The place had a vast stone floor covered with bits of dried leaves and dust. The walls were the same dark red colour, also peeling to the point of having wood show through. However, on the wall furthest from the entrance, there was an archway; a tunnel leading away to someplace else. Yamamoto stepped cautiously in, glancing around. The building looked a lot bigger on the inside than it did outside. The sunlight lit up the massive beams supporting the roof and the spacious area inside. Stepping in, Yamamoto followed the path illuminated by the sun pouring in from the doorway and headed towards the tunnel.

Common sense was telling him that walking back up the dirt pathway and back to the bus stop was the logical thing to do, not to mention definatly safer, but why spend two hours doing nothing when you could do just a little bit of exploring? His footsteps echoed loudly against the walls as he crossed the floor of the building and over to the tunnel. The sunlight didn't reach that far into the building. Only a small stream of brightness shone into the side of the tunnel. Beyond that, he could see nothing.

"Whoa, it's dark. Where's my cell phone?"

Yes, it was the typical teenager thing to do even though at nineteen years old, Yamamoto was far from being a young teen now. He pulled out his phone and unlocked to touch screen. The faint blue glow illuminated the curved arch above him. Taking a deep breath that smelled of earth and rainwater, Yamamoto walked onwards into the tunnel. The air moved around him, almost pulling the baseball player forward, which confirmed Yamamoto's belief that the passageway did lead somewhere. He felt around and touched to cool stone, which was slightly damp. He felt the walls curve, leading him in what felt like an S-turn. As he rounded to the side again towards his right, Yamamoto saw it.

A glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

Elated, he ran the rest of the way. It was a small sliver of sunlight streaming in through what appeared to be a crack in the wall. Takeshi arrived at it, reaching his hand out to feel around the wall. It was a different texture now; wood. His hand moved further down. Was that a handle? Yamamoto seized it and pushed hard. With another loud, creaking protest of wood, the doors gave way to Yamamoto's athletic build and swung open, flooding the tunnel with light. Yamamoto straightened up and stared.

He was standing in a grassy field now, which felt a bit damp under his converses and ticked his ankles. The wind blew smoothly, rustling the long, uncut verdant. A small pathway appeared from nowhere in the grass and cut up along and over the hill, disappearing over the edge. Yamamoto immediately started running up the path, curious to what lies ahead. The air was fresher than anywhere he'd been before, and the sky was sunny and the clouds were poufy and hung low, like giant marshmallow puffs. Who knew that the crusty old building led to someplace like this? He should come back for a picnic sometime.

Finally climbing up to the top, Yamamoto was greeted with a wide view of a winding river leading out to a vast plain of grass. The landscape dipped away from sight again to a point where Yamamoto couldn't see. But what intrigued him was a small village like cluster of buildings that crowded around the river's edge, just before the grassy hills rolled out of sight. Running down the slopes, Yamamoto waded through the tall grass and over to the village. It looked like a traditional Japanese setting. There was a small stream running over the stones leading up to a set of carved steps. Yamamoto came to a halt at the edge of the brook. A large stone frog was perched at the top of the steps; its mouth gaping open like it was trying to catch non-existent flies.

"Huh. You don't see a lot of that anymore." Yamamoto commented, taking out his phone to take a picture. His mobile beeped, flashing a red light. _No signal_.

The baseball player deleted the notification, sliding his cell back into his pocket before jumping over the larger stones that cleared the water's surface and climbed up the steps. It was all very quiet. Yamamoto walked up the unpaved path, occasionally crossing over pieces of stone slabs. The first few structures were small shacks with thatched roofs, then it gradually progressed to clay houses built vertically upwards at the road tilted sharply up, creating several winding steps here and there. The houses were somewhat mismatched; Yamamoto saw one residence use a sheet of metal for a door and another with funny poles supporting the balcony hammered together out of planks of wood and small timbers. Shutters were painted different colours and long, laundry strings hung across the street without any clothes on it at all.

"Is this a ghost town?" Yamamoto wondered aloud, his voice sounding strange in such emptiness. What a shame; this village seems like such a great place to live. Eventually, the incline evened out, and the road became wider and more spacious, leading into what looked like a marketplace. Shops of various foods, clothing, and herbs crowded around the street. They were all empty and dark, but the place didn't look unkempt. In fact, it looked very neat and tidy, and still very much in use. Yamamoto peered around. What was this place?

He counted four sushi shops, two ramen stands, saw a store with glass jars by the windows displaying lizards floating in greenish liquid, a bakery and two more clothing outfitters with silk kimonos on display. The style of the village also appeared to be very old-fashioned. Yamamoto hadn't seen these types of buildings in years. The road turned once more, and now the teen found himself staring at yet another flight of stone steps leading up to an impressive building.

"Whoa." Yamamoto muttered. "You _definatly_ don't see much of that anymore."

The stairs led up to a stretch of cobblestone road and a vast bridge made of handsome, polished wood and painted flashy colours like red and gold. Beyond it was a giant building also painted the same colours. It looked like a giant mansion, several stories high, nearly as wide as the whole village and had large windows. The roof was made with elaborately designed shingles, fountains and stone statues like the frog back by the stream at the edge of the village decorated the outskirts of the house. Steam poured out of what appeared to be smokestacks near the back, black and sooty. A blue flag flapped in the wind, the word _Bath House_ painted across it in white.

"Eh? A public bath house? What a flashy place." Yamamoto commented, running over the bridge to the building. There was no front door; only an entrance covered with glittery cloth and had wind chimes hanging around it. They tinkled in the wind, sounding eerie yet calming at the same time. Where was everybody? This place didn't look like it was abandoned; the smoke puffing out of the smokestacks and the overall tidiness of the whole estate proved that. Yamamoto pushed aside the decorations hanging over the entrance and peered inside.

It was dark. There was a large Chinese painting on display in the entryway and on a raised platform was a desk with little boxes lined up neatly on it. Yamamoto looked for a mat to wipe his shoes on, but found none. Tapping the dirt off of his footwear just to be polite, the baseball player took a step up onto the platform and ventured into the dim bath house. Even in the shady blackness, Yamamoto could tell that the place was elegant and fancy. Screens were set up around sitting areas, where there were low polished tables and comfy cushions placed neatly around it. Further in, there were more paintings of mostly Japanese mythical creatures and potted plants that sprouted huge yellow buds and perfumed flowers. Finally, Yamamoto came to a set of towering sliding doors with the word _Bath_ written across the smooth surface of the wood. Reaching out, he pulled the doors back.

The bath rooms were magnificent. The giant dog bowl-shaped tubs were made of refined stone and could have easily fit a small truck in them. There were sheets of screens dividing them. Lamps were set on a low lighting, casting a warm glow over everything. At the end of the hall was an elevator that went all the way up to four other floors. Yamamoto could see the various community rooms behind the railing made of shiny wood. Steam rose from the tubs in several of the cubicles, and there was the sound of water draining somewhere. The scent of fresh herbs and salt water hung in the air like smoke and tickled his nose.

"Achoo!" Yamamoto sneezed, sniffling a little.

"Bless you!" A soft voice came from inside the cubicle closest to him.

"Thanks!" Yamamoto called in reply. There was a moment of silence. Then the baseball player caught on. "Wait, what?"

There was a tiny, "eep!" and to Yamamoto's shock, a _person_ actually came scrambling out of the bathtub, slid down the curved side and came to a stumbling halt in front of the baseball player. He was a tiny little thing with a mess of soft, droopy light brown hair and large, hazel eyes, dressed in a blue yukata and had a pair of slippers on. He bowed over and over again, spluttering apologies.

"I'm sorry, Reborn-san! I promise I won't leave the sleeping quarters again tonight! I just wanted to take a walk and I know we're not supposed to be in the Bath Rooms, but I just needed to clear my head, I—"

"Whoa, whoa, relax kid, I'm not gonna hurt you or anything," Yamamoto said quickly, reaching out to grab the brunette's shoulder. The kid winced and then tensed, slowly looking up at Yamamoto. Confusion crossed over his face, and then his eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Are you a customer?" he asked curiously. "How did you get in here before sunset?"

"Eh?" Yamamoto asked. "No, I don't think I'm here for a bath…I was just passing through this town."

The kid looked utterly perplexed. "Passing through? But there's still a minute or two before the sun goes down. How is that possible?"

Yamamoto stared. This kid was weird. "Well…it's not like I'm scared of sunlight or anything. I do like being outside in the daylight. It's nice weather out, why don't you go outside and see for yourself?"

The shorty stared back at Yamamoto like he'd grown an extra head, and then he went so pale Yamamoto was certain he'd faint on the spot. "Whoa, are you okay, kid?"

"You're a _human_?" the boy gasped as his hands shot out to grab at the sleeves of Yamamoto's shirt. "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no…you've got to get out of here!"

"Huh?" Yamamoto asked, now confused. "What do you mean?" The kid was now pushing him backwards out of the Bath Room, tugging at his shirt and hands.

"You have to leave! Quickly! Don't linger!"

"What's going on?" Yamamoto questioned, now worried. The brunette looked fearfully around before dragging the bemused baseball player to the door way of the bathhouse. Outside, the bridge and the village was bathed in the golden glow of the setting sun. The kid wailed softly, now shoving Yamamoto off the platform. "Run! Don't look back! You must leave before the sun sets!"

A gong sounded in the distance, and suddenly, the front of the bathhouse was illuminated by the lamps. Yamamoto blinked, momentarily blinded by the sudden light. The kid gasped, dancing helplessly on the spot. "Go! Run for it and don't look back!"

Yamamoto stared at the brunette as the lights glowed even brighter. There was the sound of movement from the floors above them now, the sounds of footsteps and muffled chatter. The kid flapped his arms at him. "_Go!_"

Yamamoto turned and ran. He didn't know why the boy was suddenly so panicked, but there was definatly something weird about this place now. He dashed across the bridge and back down the stone steps into the village just as the sun finally vanished below the horizon. For a moment, there was nothing but a bluish darkness hanging over the shops, and then, the lights came one. Lanterns hung over the marketplace glowed suddenly as though somebody had lit a match in them, and Yamamoto froze on the spot as people began appearing. Literally _appearing_ out of thin air, from the ground, coming out of the walls.

Except, they weren't really people.

They were ghosts.

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><p>Looks like Yamamoto's got himself caught in yet another problematic situation now, haha. :3 If you haven't guessed already, this is based loosely on Miyazaki's storyline for <em>Spirited Away<em>, though there will be some huge differences here and there, since Yamamoto's not really a crybaby and the other wonderful main character, Hibari, isn't exactly the most Haku-like guy around. If you can guess who the kid that helped Yamamoto was, I'll throw you a cookie (it's pretty obvious). :D

Thank you for reading! Reviews are always appreciated.

-BlackStar


	2. Chapter 2

One Summer's Day

Hello again~ Here is Chapter Two of _One Summer's Day_, where Hibari makes his grand appearance! We'll also be seeing a few other characters from KHR in their new roles. Whoopee. ~(^_^~) I actually managed to finish this chapter early, so I might take more time on the next one. I promise not to be _too_ late on the update or anything~ haha. In any case…even idiots get sick. Just thought I'd toss that out there somewhere :'D

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities on characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

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><p>Chapter Two<p>

Yamamoto was not really a superstitious person. Sure, he'd heard stories from his father when he was a child and had believed in them like a child would, but later he grew out of them. But standing in the midst of a street full of semi-transparent, shadowy, faceless figures was definatly a departure from a rational mind. Not to mention next to freaking _impossible_.

The ghosts moved up and down street slowly like they were underwater, making stops at stores, peering into windows, and then walking through the doors and reappearing inside of the shops. Others were seated at the open booths of sushi bars, lowering their faces through the plates of food. Most of them simply wobbled along the road, hardly sparing him a second glance. Yamamoto stood frozen in place for a very long time, his brain trying to catch up to the events unfolding in front of him.

"No way." He breathed, shaking hands clenched into fists. His unmoving legs uprooted themselves from the dirt road and slowly began walking. He passed a tall shadowy ghost and saw the blank, milky eyes staring from its smooth face. There was no mouth or nose visible. His pace quickened. Another ghost rose unsteadily from the ground and another seeped through the wall. He was running now, legs pumping and his heart hammering in his throat.

_Don't panic,_ Yamamoto thought, his breath coming out in pants. _Keep running. Don't look back_.

He heard the words of the small brunette in his mind. Was he a ghost too? Yamamoto raced through the street as it started to narrow, jumping down the occasional stone steps. Ghosts appeared from the houses, making Yamamoto feel even more paranoid. The baseball player ran and stumbled down the last flight of stairs. He could see the stone frog now. He dashed down the flight of stairs, following the stream of water running down the steps from the frog's gaping mouth.

Wait, water?

Yamamoto jerked backwards just in time; his foot slipped a little on the wet stone and he stuck his other leg out into ice cold water to steady himself.

"Whoa! That's freezing!" Yamamoto gasped, yanking his leg out. He stood, staring beyond the last step of the stairs. There was water everywhere. If he squinted, Yamamoto could almost see the bank on the opposite side of the meadow, but not the building from where he came from because of the hill. The water rippled a little, disturbed by the movement Yamamoto caused when he almost fell in. It didn't take a genius to tell that he was stuck on the shore.

"Damn." Yamamoto cussed, reaching into his pocket for his phone. The screen flashed to life. _No signal_.

"Damn!" Yamamoto cried again, yanking at his hair in frustration. Here he was, trapped in what appeared to be a spirit world of some sorts, with no safe way of crossing a river that had virtually been non-existent moments ago and no communication to the "outside" world. Would the people at his University realize that he was missing? How long would it be before they called the police? What about his dad or friends? Would they realize something was wrong after they couldn't reach him? Would the ghosts attack him? Would it be possible for him to swim across? No, he wouldn't. Drowning was not one of Yamamoto's preferred ways to die.

Yamamoto turned and kicked at the steps. He should have just stayed put. What time was it now?

"Are you done your herbivore tantrum yet?"

Yamamoto jerked and snapped his head up, staring at a tall figure standing at the top of the steps. It was a young man around his age; maybe a bit older. He was dressed in a simple white shirt and black pants with a jacket hanging loosely around his shoulders. His hair was inky black, like Yamamoto's, cut short with choppy bangs framing his pale face and narrow onyx eyes. His arms were crossed and he glared down at Yamamoto with an air of authority. However, he wasn't transparent. Yamamoto's breath hitched.

"What?"

The raven's eyes narrowed. "I did not give you permission to speak to me in such a haughty manner, herbivore. Step away from the river with your hands up."

Yamamoto paused, tilting his head in curiosity. Who was this guy? Was he some kind of security? Apparently he didn't like waiting, because his scowl deepened and he snarled, "_Now_, herbivore."

"Maa, maa, relax." Yamamoto said lightly, raising his hands up to his shoulders and took a couple of steps forward. The raven watched his every move the way a lion would watch a difficult prey; carefully, calculatingly. He walked briskly down the stairs until he was standing one step up from Yamamoto. His eyes were dark and merciless. "Where are you from, herbivore?"

"Huh?" Yamamoto asked dumbly. "Ouch!"

The raven "tched" loudly and smacked Yamamoto on the head. "Are you deaf? Or are you incapable of understanding a simple question? Don't tell me you're a troll or something, even if you don't smell like one, your capacity to comprehend something tells me otherwise."

"Hey, I'm not a troll!" Yamamoto said indignantly. "That's a mean thing to call somebody."

"True, I do admit that the useless species' name is good for nothing other than to be used as an insult. Not that that matters in this conversation." He pursed his lips, tapping his foot in annoyance. "I'll ask again, herbivore. Where are you from? What are you?"

"What am I?" Yamamoto asked, confused. "Yamamoto Takeshi, of course."

The raven stared blankly at the baseball lover for a moment before making an exasperated noise in the back of his throat. "I didn't mean your _name_, baka, I couldn't give a smack about what you're called. What are you? A necromancer? A common spirit? Or are you some minor god of pottery making…or…something?"

Yamamoto stared back at the guy. What on earth was going on about? Necromancers? Spirits? A pottery making god? "No, no…" Yamamoto said, creeped out now. "I'm a human."

The raven's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "A _what_?" he spat angrily, grabbing Yamamoto's collar and jerked him forwards so their noses were less than an inch from each other.

"I'm human," Yamamoto repeated, frustrated. "What's your problem?"

The raven's eyes narrowed into slits. Suddenly, he whipped what appeared to be a long and silver weapon out from the folds of his jacket (Yamamoto wasn't sure quite how) and in one swift movement, hit Yamamoto so hard in the head that he baseball player staggered backwards, blinking spots before tripping over the last step and falling with a giant splash into the water.

The river was a lot deeper than it looked, and Yamamoto thrashed around a little, trying to gain back his sense of direction while inhaling a lot of water up his nose. There was the sound of splashing in the distance that wasn't his own, and then, a hand grabbed the front of his soaking wet shirt and hauled him upright. Yamamoto surfaced, gasping in a lungful of air and accidentally spitting out a stream of water into the face of his 'savior'. The raven coughed and made a retching noise in his throat, wiping his face with the back of his free hand as he glared at Yamamoto as the two stood in waist deep water.

"Are you stupid?" the annoyed security guy snarled, yanking Yamamoto closer. "Why the hell did you fall in?"

"Why on earth did you hit me?" Yamamoto retorted, feeling the side of his temple and wincing when his cold fingers came into contact with a lump the size of an egg.

"You're trespassing in the Spirit World! A human had no place here! You should be properly bitten to death for you impudence!" the raven snapped, dragging a dazed Yamamoto out of the water. The baseball player staggered onto the steps, almost unable to feel his legs and shivering intensely as a gust of wind blew through his dripping shirt. But the wind wasn't the only reason he was shaking so badly.

He really _was_ in a Spirit World. By some ridiculous chance of fate or a total freak accident, he'd somehow managed to wander into a domain of supernatural beings where humans obviously were not welcomed and did not belong, and now, he was at the mercy of some sadistic, maniac, violence-loving security bloke who had insulted him, smacked him, hit him in the head with a weapon and nearly drowned him, all within a minute of meeting each other. Yamamoto shook water out of his hair, looking wearily up at the raven as the other wrung water out of his jacket. As though he could sense that he was being watched, the dark-haired male turned his head sharply and said, "On your feet, herbivore. I'm taking you to see the real authority of this place."

"What?" Yamamoto said weakly. _"You mean, this guy isn't even the boss around here?"_ he thought.

"Don't make me repeat myself." The raven snapped. "I really don't mind beating some sense into you again." He raised the weapon that had been carefully concealed in his coat before: two long, identical, hand-held weapons: a pair of silver tonfas. Yamamoto stared. They were old weapons, not often used anymore, and definatly not as popular as a katana or anything (something that Takeshi had been wielding since the age of fourteen). But he really didn't want to get hit again. Really.

Slowly, he managed to stagger back onto his feet and stared in resignation at the raven, who 'hmphed' and beckoned him away from the water. Yamamoto threw one last, longing look over his shoulder at the hill before walking up the stairs with the security guy. They went back up the same way Yamamoto had been running down minutes before. He noticed that the ghosts carefully parted away from the road as the raven led Yamamoto away from the river, almost as though they were careful to avoid the bad-tempered tonfa-wielder as much as Yamamoto wanted to as well.

Back up the occasional stone step, through the narrow streets they walked, and finally, ducking under a faded sunshade under a neon lights sign written in another language, the raven led Yamamoto through a shortcut and the next thing he knew, the two of them were standing by the bridge once before the bathhouse again. But this time, the entire atmosphere of the place had changed.

The bathhouse was bathed in the golden light of dozens of lanterns lined up along the bridge or floating in mid-air, hovering around the entire building like giant fireflies. The scents of herbs and saltwater came wafting towards him in strong puffs carried by the wind. Smoke billowed from the smokestacks like an avid smoker, nearly invisible against the inky night sky.

"Hurry up."

Yamamoto jerked back to his senses, realizing that Hibari was almost halfway across the bridge now. Tearing his eyes away from the picturebook-like scene, Yamamoto scrambled after the raven. "Your boss works in this place?" he asked, unable to think of any other reason why the security guy would want to visit a bathhouse otherwise.

"No, herbivore." The raven snapped, glaring back at him. "My boss _owns_ this place. Move it."

Yamamoto gaped, unsure of how to respond. Apparently the violent guy wasn't expecting him to, because he turned again and continued to walk forwards. Frowning, the baseball lover ran to catch up. As the raven passed under the glow of a nearby lantern, Yamamoto saw it.

_Wings_.

"Ehh?" he spluttered, staring in utter shock. There were wings, giant, jet black wings, folded neatly along the guy's back, almost camouflaged against his jacket, with gleaming black feathers that changed colours with every one of the raven's move without losing its inky austere. It was a lot like looking at oil slick in the water. Then, the raven moved out of the light, and the wings were gone. Poof.

Like they'd never existed.

Yamamoto stood frozen for a moment. Was it a trick of the light? The wings had appeared and disappeared so quickly that he couldn't tell if they were real or just his imagination. But then again, this was the spirit world. Would it be so insane that somebody actually had wings on their back? Yamamoto shook his head clear of thoughts and reluctantly followed the raven into the bathhouse.

Inside, it was near chaos. There were so many people or spirits running about it was nearly impossible to navigate anywhere without accidentally being stepped on, or accidentally stepping on somebody yourself. Short, frog-like men dressed in white Japanese-styled work clothes hurried about holding buckets, mops, and other cleaning utensils. A cluster of girls with heavily made-up faces tottered along in fancy kimonos, wild hairdos and tiny, laced-up slippers. Another group of workers, both male and female clad in less fancy and uptight kimonos and yukatas scrambled about, holding trays or handfuls of funny wooden tags with different coloured circles painted onto the red-tinted wood. They were dressed like the small brunette who'd warned Yamamoto earlier. That little boy wasn't scared of him; so why on earth should that violent guy be so angry at him?

"Keep up."

Keeping their conversations short and sharp, the raven led Yamamoto through the maze like setting of the bathhouse, where the workers all parted their ways to let him pass, bowing hurriedly and adverting their eyes. The only way not to get lost was to literally stick to the raven's side, which Yamamoto did despite not really wanting to get any closer to him. They passed the entire section of the sitting area completely, but didn't enter the bath area. As they walked along the hall next to the thin bamboo walls, Yamamoto could hear the sound of running water more clearly than before, with even thicker wafts of steam raising in complicated swirls up to the high roof. The raven turned the corner again, and this time, they found themselves in an emptier hallway. At the end of the passage was a doorless industrial elevator.

"In."

Yamamoto walked in first, closely followed by the security guy. The raven reached over to pull a large, bronze lever on the wall and held it down as the lift groaned to life and began winding its way up. They passed at least three floors before to ground to a bone-jarring halt. Unfazed, the raven yanked on the lever again and the lift began cranking its way up once more.

Yamamoto couldn't fathom who on earth would own such an elaborate place like this bathhouse, and why on earth they would be the raven's boss, who was probably the oddest one out in the whole setting. Would the boss be a demonic spirit like him? Would he have wings too? Yamamoto sighed and leaned against the wall. He really, really, really should have just stayed put.

The elevator groaned one last time, creaking madly before it came to its final stop at what appeared to be the top floor. The raven glared at Yamamoto before walking out, clearly expecting him to follow. Wondering what would happen if he yanked the lever to go back down, Yamamoto fought the urge to test it out and got off the lift as well. They arrived on a well-furnished landing. The floors and decorative pillars were made with dark marble and the doors were made of handsomely polished mahogany wood. A knocker with a lion's head hung at shoulder-level on one of the double doors, which the raven slammed once with a resounding force and kicked the door open without even waiting for an invitation in.

Yamamoto followed him down yet another dark hallway, also made of the same elaborate stone. Whoever owned this place certainly had a lot of money to splash around. They made a left, walked down another hall, opened a smaller door, hurried down another hallway _again_, and finally come to a stop in front of a simple sliding door. The raven knocked once with his fist, rolling his eyes. Yamamoto stood by, nervous.

"Come in, Hibari." a voice sounded from the other side. The raven turned his dark eyes onto Yamamoto, piercing through the other's soft orbs with his gaze. "Get in." he hissed, grabbing the teen's collar and shoved him in.

It was an office. Yamamoto stumbled in, nearly tripping over his wet shoes and squelched loudly on the polished floor in an attempt to save himself. Behind him, the raven—Hibari—slid the sliding door shut with a snap and walked smartly into the dimply lit, perfumed room.

"Here is the intruder, Byakuran."

A man seated at an oak desk at the far end of the room by a magnificent glass window looked up. He had a very bizarre image. His hair was spiky and white, with a strange marking under his left eye. His eyes were a shade of an unnatural, pale purple. He was dressed in an elaborately designed suit consisting of pants, boots, a pressed shirt and an overcoat with shoulder pads and a lot pins and chains everywhere. On his finger was a large, ornate silver ring with a complicated coat of arms on it.

"Ah, yes. I see." The white-haired man looked up, smiling lightly at Yamamoto that did not match the coldness in his eyes. "What've we have here, Hibari?"

"A human." Hibari spat, glaring at Yamamoto, who tried not to flinch. Byakuran's eyebrows shot up, and then a look of understanding crossed his face. "A human? I see…I see…hn, this should be interesting. How'd you find your way in to the Spirit World, human?" he called out to Yamamoto.

Yamamoto bit his lip. He didn't like the way the guy looked at him. "I got lost on my way to my new school. I found an old building and I just walked in."

Byakuran tapped his fingers on his desk, tilting his head. "Hn, you got in through a portal. That story checks out. We've had the occasional human wander in without really meaning to. I've met several hundred before."

"Several hundred?" Yamamoto choked. "Are they all still here?"

Byakuran's eyes glinted dangerously. "In a way…yes." He said slowly, a small smiling appearing on his pale lips. "Well, in any case, I suppose you'd like to go home, wouldn't you?"

Yamamoto paused, his answer on the tip of his tongue, but something didn't feel right. That man, Byakuran, was almost acting like he was playing a game with Yamamoto. It was a rhetorical question, really, and if the man already knew the answer, why was he asking Yamamoto? The baseball player bit his lip again, looking right at the white-haired man.

"You're not going to let me out, are you."

Byakuran's eyes widened, and then he burst out laughing at the statement, slapping the desk and holding his sides like he'd just heard the world's funniest joke. Yamamoto stood, watching. Hibari looked away into the fireplace, eyes burning.

"You really are an interesting human, aren't you?" Byakuran gasped, wiping a tear from his eye. "Very good, very good. You may say that you didn't mean to trespass into our world, but hey, you could be lying. In any case, serving a punishment is in order, don't you think? A bit of work in our world, pay off your crime, blah, blah, blah, and then I let you go home and we part our merry ways. Sounds like a plan? Not that you're going to have much of an opinion on it anyway, so don't worry about all the technical stuff. What's your name, human? Can't call you human all the time, can I?"

"Yamamoto Takeshi." Yamamoto said through gritted teeth. This was not happening to him. This guy…there was something very wrong with him indeed.

"Very well, Yamamoto Takeshi. I'm going to have to ask you to sign a contract. You can read it though; it's all proper, nothing wishy-washy, hanky-panky or all that nonsense. It says that you serve your sentence, properly, effectively, and I let you out. Deal?" A piece of parchment and a fountain pen levitated from Byakuran's desk and flew silently over to where Yamamoto stood. The baseball player took it a scanned the contract. It really was as Byakuran stated; he served his sentence of two months of work in the Whitespell bathhouse, and he'd be free. Apparently, time passed differently in the spirit world than the human realm, so it would be as though he'd never left in the first place. Taking a deep breath, Yamamoto placed the tip of the pen on the paper and signed his name.

The moment he finished, the paper and pen slid from his fingers and drifted back towards Byakuran, who looked over it once with his sharp purple eyes. "Forgive me, Yamamoto Takeshi, but your name is very long. I have many workers working for me here at the Whitespell bathhouse, so I tend to use nicknames instead." Light purple met dark brown as the boss looked up into the baseball player's face.

"Would Takeshi-kun be alright for you instead?"

"I…" Yamamoto hesitated. "Sure. Yeah, okay."

Byakuran smiled again. "Thank you very much for your co-operation, Takeshi-kun." The contract folded itself neatly and slipped under a paperweight on his desk. "I suppose we should ask Hibari to send you to your work placement now, shouldn't we?"

"Me?" Hibari asked sharply from the fireplace. "Why do I have to take him?"

"C'mon, Hibari, don't be a spoilsport." Byakuran chuckled as he opened a thick, leather-bound book and flipped idly through the pages. "Now, now…I don't want to tire you out too badly, since humans don't have much stamina as opposed to the frog-men or a troll…but see here…ah! I have just the place for you." Byakuran looked up, shutting the heavy volume with a snap that sent a cloud of dust wafting upwards. Yamamoto didn't like the gleam in his eyes at all. It was the kind of look that spoke of ill-news and a foreboding sense of danger.

"Hibari, would you be as kind as to escort Takeshi-kun to Collonello's boiler room?"

* * *

><p>Whaaa~ done Chapter Two! I was originally going to include Reborn and Lal in this chapter, but last minute plans scraped them and I put Byakuran in instead. Not that Reborn and Lal aren't going to show up…they'll just come in in later chapters. In case you haven't figured it out already, the kid who helped Yamamoto in the first chapter was Tsuna (yay~). I thought it would be simple, but then again, my description of him could also be applied to Basil, haha. Well, looks like Yamamoto's off to the boiler room. I know the order's off a little, but it'll be all good, I promise :D Please be patient with me and Chapter Three! I hope I can guarantee an update in a week's time! ."<p>

Until next time! Reviews are much appreciated, because in the long run, they're my inspiration to write more (not a lie) :'D Thanks guys 3

-BlackStar


	3. Chapter 3

One Summer's Day

Wow…Chapter Three already! In the previous chapter, Yamamoto was brought before Byakuran, the owner of the Whitespell bathhouse, forced to sign a contract, given a nickname, and now is on his way to the boiler room to start his work with a man named Colonello. Oh boy. Chaos is ensured.

-note: from now on, I'll be referring to Yamamoto as Takeshi, since Byakuran "changed" his name in the last chapter, and for the storyline's sake, I'll just be going with that to make it sound more authentic.

-also, I noticed that I spelt Colonello's name wrong in the last chapter. My apologies. *bows*

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. I'm too tired to make a fun disclaimer. Oh, well. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Chapter Three<p>

It was like moving in a dream. Takeshi stumbled limply along after Hibari, his mind blank with confusion and disbelief. He was stuck in the spirit world. He wasn't going home until some weird guy with white hair sitting behind a desk said he could. Worst of all, he was being treated like some common criminal.

"Hurry up." Hibari snapped again, pushing him into the elevator with the butt of his tonfa as though touching Takeshi would contaminate him. Takeshi staggered in, blinking. He'd been so numbed with shock that he hadn't even noticed when they'd left Byakuran's office. Hibari yanked hard on the lever, and the lift groaned again as it began its decent. Takeshi stood silently against the cold metal of the elevator. Finally, he gathered enough courage to look up at Hibari and ask, "Hibari, who is Colonello?"

The first thing Takeshi did upon finishing his question is to throw his hands up to shield his face as Hibari's tonfas came flying towards his head for the third time that night already. "Who gave you permission to call me by my name?" Hibari snarled, pressing the cool metal down on Takeshi's arm, forcing him back against the wall of the lift.

"No, I—I didn't mean to—"

"For your information, _Takeshi-kun_," Hibari mocks in Takeshi's voice, "You will address me as Hibari-san while you work here in the bathhouse. Second of all, herbivores don't get to ask questions. Are we clear?"

Takeshi stared right into Hibari's deep onyx eyes that reflected the occasional streak of light as they passed through brightly lit floors. The smell of herbs and salt water were becoming predominant again; they were reaching the lower levels. Takeshi couldn't help but think—he couldn't help but _know_— that if Hibari would smile a little, his eyes would crinkle very beautifully and the laughter would be reflected right in those dark orbs.

"If you work here too, is Hibari your nickname then, _Hibari-san_?"

The words came tumbling out of Takeshi's mouth before he could stop them. Hibari's eyes actually widened and for a moment, the baseball player swore he could feel his soul evaporate from the expression Hibari was shooting at him from such a close distance. But then, the raven withdrew his tonfas and backed away from the taller of the two, his face unreadable. Takeshi moved away from Hibari to the opposite wall, rubbing a bruise blooming on his forearm. The lift groaned loudly and continued its way down. Only now did Takeshi realize that they were going much deeper than the ground floor. It was getting darker and more humid. The sounds of the bathhouse gave way to the noise of machines whirring, cranking, and laboring in the lowest levels of the estate. Finally, after a long silence, the lift came to a shuddering stop on the last floor.

Hibari stepped out first, once again leaving Takeshi to follow. The basement had a low ceiling and was rather wet and steamy. Various mechanical noises groaned from above, and water dripped from the cracks between the wood. Hibari walked briskly to the end of the straight passageway, coming to a halt at five wooden planks of varying lengths nailed into the wall to create a crude staircase/ladder. Up above, just above an average person's head, was a small sliding wooden door. Hibari turned to glare at Takeshi. "You're going first."

Takeshi didn't argue. Somewhat resigning to his fate, the baseball player reached out to grasp the weathered planks to remain steady as he hauled himself up. He slid open the sliding door, ducked through the small space, pulled himself onto a wooden platform, and finally straightened up.

The room was gigantic. It was almost as high as the bathing area in the bathhouse, but nowhere near as elegant or decorated. The walls were made of badly molded, sick grey plaster with deep cracks running through it. He was standing on a platform raised about a foot of the concrete ground covered in soot. Part of the platform was raised and set up with controls like a mine shaft operator's panel. Several metal chutes were dispensing chunks of coal roughly the size of a fist into metal tubs. Shovels hung on hooks nailed in a neat row on the wall. Right along the back of the basement was dozens of drawers lined up to the ceiling with a rolling ladder attached to it. Across from the back of the wall was a giant furnace, glowing red hot, hissing steam, and burning coal madly. A small flap near the bottom opened and closed rhythmically, spitting out sparks as it did. Takeshi sucked in a breath, his shirt already sticking to him in the humidity. This was the boiler room.

Hibari, unfazed by the giant incinerator or the overall contrast of the room from the rest of the bathhouse, walked to the edge of the platform and bellowed over the noise of the burner, "Colonello! There's work for you!"

There was no immediate response, but then a muffled voice yelled, "There's always work for me, kora! Shut up and I'll be out in a second!" Hibari huffed and crossed his arms. A moment later, a shadow loomed over from the behind the furnace and a young blonde man of about twenty-five ducked out from under one of the long pipes of the boiler. He was dressed in a soot-blackened wife beater and army pants rolled up at the knees. Short black boots were laced together messily and were stained with ash and grease. His spiky hair was kept out of his eyes by a thin bandana with an odd little #1 stitched on it. Despite being a complete mess in general, the man's eyes were the lightest shade of baby blue and his face held a type mischief and cleverness associated with smart thinkers. He wiped his hands on a rag and made an annoyed expression when he saw Hibari standing on the platform.

"Why are you here, sourpuss?"

Hibari bared his teeth and grabbed Yamamoto, shoving him forward. "Your new task. Watch this herbivore and make sure he works. He's a trespasser and he's assigned under your supervision in the boiler room for the next two months. Get used to it, dirtface."

The blonde scowled at Hibari as the other turned on his heel and walked away, sliding silently through the small doorway and vanishing in an instant. There was a moment of awkward silence before the taller of the two looked Takeshi up and down for a moment before extending a hand.

"I'm Colonello. I guess we'll be working together now, eh?"

"Ah, yes." Takeshi said hurriedly, taking the blonde's soot-covered hand and shook it. "I'm Takeshi. I, uh, was placed here by Byakuran."

Colonello snorted disdainfully. "Huh. Everybody is assigned to do something by that white-haired freak in this place. You can't survive if you don't work. He's the one who threw me in here the first place. It's hard work but it's not completely torturous." Colonello tilted his head and observed the baseball player for a moment. "Say, what are you, kora? I expected Byakuran to send somebody who's a bit more of a grunt for this type of job. Like, a troll, or something."

"Maa, maa…" Takeshi said, scratching the back of his head a little and sweatdropping. "_Why does everybody make a reference to trolls?_" He laughed weakly. "I'm human."

Colonello, who had reached for a large copper kettle sitting ontop of the control panel and had taken a big swig from it, choked loudly and spewed out a mouthful of water. "You're a _human_?" he coughed, wiping his chin. "Damn, no wonder Hibari looked like somebody shoved a stick up his ass."

"What do you mean?" Takeshi asked, confused. Colonello didn't answer right away. He set the kettle back down and grabbed a washcloth from hanging from a hook on the wall. The blonde worked tossed it over the mess and beckoned Takeshi back over to the small sliding door. The baseball player followed Colonello down the planks and over to a dimly lit storage room stacked full of boxes, tools, and scrap metal and more boxes. Colonello reached for a dusty one labeled uniforms.

After digging through it and tossing aside a few dark green jumpsuits that could've fit several Takeshis inside it, Colonello threw a medium sized one over for him to change into. Finally, after Takeshi had rolled up his sleeves three times and stored his shirt, jeans, and socks into a plastic tub on the shelves, Colonello said quietly to him, "Hibari hates humans, kora."

"Eh?" Takeshi said, surprised. "Doesn't he hate everybody?"

Colonello threw back his head and let out a barking laugh at Takeshi's oblivious honesty. His eyes sparkled kindly as he threw an arm around the shorter boy and led him back out of the storage room and into the boiler room. "True words, little guy. Hibari does act like a PMSing bitch all the time, but he's really, really, _really_ terrible to humans. He hates them. He'll do almost anything to get rid of them. There are rumors here as to why he's working with Byakuran. Some say he's plotting to go out there and destroy the human world. Bite them all to death, or something."

"Why, though?" Takeshi said, startled. "I mean, why does he hate humans so badly? Did something happen?"

Colonello tapped his lip thoughtfully as he gazed at the steaming boiler. "I don't know what happened…but what I do know is that Hibari used to be a type of spirit. He was a really powerful, really rare type of deity."

"Was?" Takeshi repeated, frowning. Colonello nodded. "Like all spirits, Hibari could constantly flit between the Human Realm and the Spirit World. But one day, Hibari disappeared into the Human Realm, and when he came back into the Spirit World, all of his powers were gone. There was nothing left of him. The rumor is that humans were the reason why his powers vanished, which is why he hates them so much. Byakuran got him back up on his feet and since then Hibari's been working here."

Colonello shot Takeshi a sidelong glance. "I'm not afraid to tell you all this since you seem like a sensible guy, but it'll be real nice if you didn't repeat this information anywhere else, kora." Takeshi gave a weak laugh. "Don't worry, Colonello-san, I'm not looking for a fight when I know how much Hibari hates my kind."

Colonello laughed again. "Drop the formalities, kid! In this room, it's just sweat and steam! Speaking of, we'd better get to work. There're three bath tokens waiting."

"Eh?" Takeshi asked, staring. Colonello gestured to a spot on the ceiling above the control panel. A rectangular chute extended from the rafter, past the giant ceiling fan, and opened right above the gearshifts. Clipped onto three separate wires were the tags Takeshi had seen the workers holding during his brief walk through the upper levels of the bathhouse. Two of the tags were simply red with one black bar painted vertically no it, but one tag had three black bars and a yellow circle painted horizontally under them.

"Those are bath tokens, kora." Colonello explained, grabbing a shovel and tossing it to Takeshi. "They indicate which baths are in need of hot water, on varying levels of heat, which are displayed by the number of black bars, and when a customer wants special bath salts or herbs. The salts are displayed by circles and herbs by triangles. With me so far?"

"Uh, yeah." Takeshi said, clutching the shovel to him. Colonello pointed to the dozen of drawers lined up along the back wall. "The herbs and salts are all stored in there. I have an inventory of all the names and all the drawers are labeled, but just look for the symbols, it's impossible to remember all of them. There are measuring spoons and cups inside of each drawer; use the exact amount, and the exact amount _only_. Byakuran is stingy. Plus, apparently several of the salts cause rashes and fungi growth on the toes if you overuse them." Colonello wrinkled his nose. "It was a nightmare. Grab the right amount, grind them down in one of the pestles, and just dump them down one of the pipes into the boiler. When you've done that, pull the _correct_ token and send it back up. Try not to mix up orders, since Reborn is a mad bastard and will come down just to throw something at you. He's the overseer in the bathhouse, and he's in charge of running everything properly. Other than all that complicated work, all you do in the boiler room is chuck coals to keep the tank running. The fires should never go out, alright? Not even after hours. If it does, then it's the end of the world as we know it. You get all that, kora?"

"Uhh, I think so." Takeshi replied. Colonello grinned, slapping him on the back. "Good man! I won't push you so hard on your first day, so go and start shoveling coal into the bath. There's a token with three bars, kora. I'll mix the herbs and help you when I'm done."

Takeshi nodded and hurried over to one of the coal dispensing chutes next to the boiler. The tubs catching the falling coal had wheels on it, so Takeshi shut the hatch on the chute and rolled the tub over to the flap in the boiler. He could feel the intense heat just by standing in the room, and now that he was up close and personal with the machine itself, he honestly felt like he was going to melt. Digging the shovel into the mass of black stones, Takeshi waited for the flap to open. When the red-hot metal cranked open, Takeshi heaved the coals right into the burning interior of the machine. It closed immediately, and then it opened again, spitting sparks. Takeshi soon fell into a simple rhythm; shovel, pause, toss, shovel again, and repeat. He wasn't a pampered little boy; Takeshi was very active as a child and played a lot of endurance sports like baseball and sword fighting, but still, it was hard work. The heat radiated off the boiler made him sweat and lose his grip on the spade. Within minutes he could feel his palms being rubbed raw by the handle of the shovel.

Colonello finished grinding the herbs and grabbed another shovel and tub of coals, joining Takeshi at the mouth of the boiler and tossing in coals alternately with the shorter teen. The work continued for a long time, interrupted a little only when a token or two dropped down from the chute and either him or Colonello went to grab the herbs or salts, or when one of them had to walk around behind the boiler to release the steam to lower the heat of the water for a customer. Takeshi's first order was a token with two bars and a circle, marked with a kanji for twelve in the center of it. Climbing up to the twelfth level of drawers, he measured out a small cup of bluish salt crystals, dropped them into a pestle and ground it down before flipping open the covering of a small pipe and shaking the powdered contents into the long tube. After pulling the token to send it back up, he rejoined Colonello and continued to heap coal into the boiler.

About three hours had passed since he first started work when a loud buzzer sounded from a clock sitting amongst the clutter on the control panel. Colonello looked up and wiped his forehead. "It's lunch time," he said, tossing the shovel aside and stretching. "We have about half an hour to eat and rest up. I'll get you a wet towel, so just relax for now, okay? You're going great for your time at this, kora."

"Thanks," Takeshi replied, hanging the shovel up as he wiped his face as well. It had gotten far too hot by the boiler, so he'd imitated Colonello and had stripped down to his undershirt. The sleeves of his jumpsuit were now tied around his waist, and the legs of his pants were rolled up to his knees. Takeshi heaved a long breath and sat down on the platform, ankles and shoulders aching. This really was brutal work that only made his hatred for Byakuran increase even more. Takeshi was a mellow kind of guy most of the time, and he didn't usually get angry, but this was pretty bad. Why was he paying time for something he didn't mean to do?

The sliding door opened again, and Takeshi turned, expecting to see Colonello, but to his surprise, a different man walked in, followed by a young woman. Takeshi quickly stood up, trying to undo the knot on his jumpsuit so he could put it on properly. "Er—excuse me, sorry—" he said quickly, pulling his uniform back on right. The two adults turned to him, but the man spoke first.

"You're Takeshi?" he asked, his voice calm, quiet, and deep. It had an underlying commanding tone to it, and almost seemed to draw Takeshi into what he was saying effortlessly. In contrast to the rest of the workers in the bathhouse, the man was wearing a neat suit instead of a yukata. He also wore a crisp yellow shirt underneath his black jacket with pressed black pants, pointed shoes and a fedora with a yellow band on it. His eyes were dark, like Hibari's, but there was a different type of glow to it. It was cool, calm, and dangerous. His face was thin and smooth, but he had rather strange, curled sideburns.

"Ah, yes, yes, I am." Takeshi replied, bowing. The man nodded and he, too, extended a hand to shake Takeshi's despite the soot covering the teen's palms and arms. "My name is Reborn. I am the overseer for the bathhouse. Byakuran notified me that there would be a new worker joining Colonello in the boiler room. I do hope you'll be working your hardest, yes?" Reborn's eyes gleamed, as though saying that Takeshi wouldn't live to see tomorrow if he said otherwise.

"Yes, of course." Takeshi hastened to answer. Reborn gestured to the woman standing behind him. "This is Lal, one of the senior workers in the bathhouse. She brought the lunch provided for you and Colonello today for introduction's sake."

Takeshi bowed quickly to Lal and moved forward to take the tray. She said nothing to him, but her eyes watched his every move carefully. She was about an inch or so shorter than he was, and had shoulder length black hair with wispy bangs that framed her heart-shaped face. She was wearing a red kimono and had the sleeves tied back with a strip of white cloth. But her most distinctive feature was what looked like a mass of thick, crisscrossing scars on the right side of her face, half-hidden by her bangs. Takeshi adverted his eyes quickly and set the tray down on the platform. He didn't want to be rude and stare at her. The sliding door slid open once again, and this time, Colonello came in, holding two damp towels. He gave a start when he saw Reborn and Lal.

"Reborn? Lal? What are you doing here, kora?" he asked, staring at the two. Lal huffed and crossed her arms, glaring at Colonello.

"I was assigned to bring you food, dumbass, and you're not even here to take it. Baka." She snapped, flicking him in the forehead. Colonello yelped and rubbed his face. "Ouch, Lal! That was mean." Lal made a noise and turned away. Reborn chuckled darkly and reached into his jacket to retrieve a package of cigarettes and tossed it at Colonello.

"There," he said smoothly. "You owe me one now."

"As if." Colonello said, grin widening as he caught the pack of cancer sticks. "Want one?"

"I brought them." Reborn sneered as the reached for the cig held out to him. Lal snatched one from Colonello before the blonde turned and offered the package to Takeshi. The baseball player shook his head, declining. He valued his health too much to risk the occasional smoke.

"C'mon, you don't have to worry." Colonello chided, reaching into his back pocket for a lighter. "Nobody will judge you if you indulge yourself a little. Even we workers under contract are allowed to smoke."

"Oh, no, I just don't want to smoke." Takeshi said, laughing lightly as Colonello exhaled a cloud of grey and flicked it for Lal before passing it to Reborn. "I play sports and I don't want to risk my health. Besides, I'm under contract too."

Colonello choked on a puff of smoke. Lal dropped her cigarette, eyes narrowing at Takeshi's words. Reborn rounded on him immediately. "What did you say?" he asked harshly. Takeshi blinked, confused.

"I play sports, so I don't smoke…?"

"No, not that, idiot." Lal snapped. "You're under contract? Did you sign a contract with Byakuran?"

"Uh…I did." Takeshi said, nervous. "Why? Is something wrong?"

Lal smacked Colonello hard in the back of the head. "Why didn't you say something?" she hissed. "Didn't you know this kid is under a contract?"

"I didn't!" Colonello shot back. "Hibari brought him down and said that he was a human caught trespassing, so that was why he's working here. I thought he was only serving time! I didn't know that bastard made him sign a bloody contract!"

"That's not the point." Reborn growled as he addressed Takeshi. "What's your name?" he asked.

"I—it's Takeshi." The baseball player replied, now deathly confused. "I told you ten minu—"

"No, we know you're called Takeshi." Lal interrupted. "What is your full name? Do you have a last name?" Takeshi stared, confused. What were those three saying?

"Put it this way, kid." Colonello said, pinching the bridge of his nose. "What do they call you in the human world? What name were you given there?"

Takeshi thought for a moment. His dad…his friends…what did they call him? What was his first and last name? "It's—it's…Takeshi…Takeshi…" The teen bit his lip as he tried to remember. It was a fuzzy piece of memory, like it was something that he once knew but couldn't recall anymore. "Takeshi Ya…Takeshi Yama…"

The words spilling out of his mouth weren't making sense himself anymore. Judging by the expressions on Colonello's, Lal's, and Reborn's faces, he wasn't making much sense to them either.

"I can't believe him." Lal hissed. "He stole from an innocent boy?"

"What do you mean?" Takeshi asked, confused now. His head hurt trying to think of his name. Why was it so difficult to remember?

Colonello gave Takeshi a long-suffering look. "Okay, kid, you signed a contract with Byakuran, didn't you?"

"Yes."

"And he said you name was too long, right?"

"Yes. How did—?"

"So he gave you a nickname. He named you Takeshi, right?"

"Yeah." Takeshi replied, unsure of where the conversation was going, but it didn't sound good. Reborn stepped up from there.

"When a worker signs a contract with Byakuran, they make a deal. You work for your allotted time and you get to go. However, while doing so, he takes the name you've written down and gives you a new one. In the process of doing so, he takes control of your real name and removes it from your memory forever."

"What?" Takeshi gasped, mouth dropping.

"That's not all." Colonello cut in. "In this world, there are many, many types of spirits and humans mingling together. If you don't know who you are, you can't direct yourself into any other domain in this universe. In other words, if you can't remember your name, you can't leave the Whitespell Bathhouse. You have to stay until you remember."

"But—but, Byakuran—" Takeshi stuttered, stunned. This could not be real. Even as he tried, he could feel the memory of his own name slipping from his mind's grasp. He couldn't remember. He couldn't remember his name. What his letters and parcels were addressed to. What his friends cheered when he made a home run. What his own _father_ named him.

"You get it now, don't you?" Reborn asked quietly. "Until you remember what your name is, you're never going to leave this place."

"Ever." Lal added, looking him straight in the eye.

Heart sinking faster than the dying flames in Colonello's cigarette, Takeshi knew that every last word was painfully, and utterly, true. Two simple words that could take him home, that represented him, that meant the _world_ to him no longer exists in his own mind.

* * *

><p>Sad ending. Sigh, sigh. Poor Takeshi, what's he going to do now? ;_; I also finished this chapter early, so yay! A faster start on chapter four! –secretly dies on the inside— Next chapter features seven interesting people, including a loud person, and angry person, and a lot of Ushiushi!'s~ If you can guess <em>them<em> I'll bake you brownies :'D

Thank you for reading, kora! Reviews are much appreciated, as always~

-BlackStar


	4. Chapter 4

One Summer's Day KHR Chapter Four

Hello everyone. So, timewise, I am doing a lot better than expected about coming up with ideas and writing new chapters, yay! My original goal of updating once a week has been reduced to between two-three days. Unless I have some big ass assignment to do, I'll definatly be able to write. So onto Chapter Four, nya.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Chapter Four<p>

Sleep did not come to Takeshi that night. Or, rather, sleep did not come to him that morning. Things in the Spirit World were run in a very different way than the Human Realm, and that included the reversal of sleeping habits. In the dead of night, the Spirit World was lit up like Tokyo, yet it was empty and silent in the mornings. But whether or not it was his accustomed time of rest, Takeshi doubted he could have slept in his current situation anyway.

He was lying on a futon laid out neatly on the platform in the boiler room, staring up at the high ceiling. The room was dim, but some light still managed to escape into the basement from somewhere high above the boiler that even the blankets and shades set up around the room didn't block out. Colonello was snoring softly next to him; long limbs splayed everywhere and his blanket scrunched up into a weird lump under his arm.

Takeshi, on the other hand, pulled his blanket tighter around him and shivered. Reborn, Colonello, and Lal's words were still sinking into him. Byakuran had done some hocus-pocus on him when Takeshi had signed his contract, and now, even when he finished his time working in the boiler room, he was doomed to stay unless he could remember his real name. Which was impossible, since Byakuran's magic had completely removed it from his memory. Takeshi had never felt so vulnerable in his life. What scared him even more was that until his three superiors pointed it out, he hadn't even _realized_ that he didn't know his own name.

Takeshi rolled over and stared up at the ceiling. He couldn't help but wonder if Colonello, Reborn, and Lal had their names taken away too, and if they did, if they could remember any part of their real name at all. Why did Byakuran steal names? What kind of magic did he have? And if the rumors were true, did Hibari work with Byakuran so that he, too, could gain some kind of new power to take revenge upon the humans? Like Takeshi?

He must have dozed off in his own thoughts at some point, because the next thing Takeshi knew, a pair of frightened hazel eyes were staring right into his own, so close that they were a little blurred when Takeshi cracked an eye open. Then he realized that it was _the_ kid that had warned him when he first wandered into the Whitespell Bathhouse, and that he was poking him in the arm to wake the groggy baseball player up.

"What the—"

"Shhh!" the kid whispered, putting a thin finger to his lips. "Not so loud. Come with me, I've got things to tell you."

Takeshi sat up, confused and still tired. It appeared to be around noon now, judging from the amount of intense sunlight streaming in through the blinds Colonello set up. The little brunette stood up and tiptoed around the snoring blonde, beckoning for Takeshi to follow. Takeshi grabbed his uniform and yanked it on so he wouldn't have to walk out of the boiler room only wearing his boxers.

The boy led him over to the elevator and gestured him in. With a quick glance around, he pulled at the lever and the lift cranked its way up again. The ride up was mostly silent save for the occasional creak and whirrs of the elevator. They came to a stop on the bathhouse level, which was dark and quiet. The brunette walked out quickly, stopping once in a while to listen for noise, and then proceeded to lead Takeshi out of the bathhouse through the front of the estate, over the bridge, and through a small gate half-hidden in the shrubbery surrounding the bathhouse.

The two of them pressed through the bushes and hedges until the came into a clearing. It looked like a secret garden that nobody visited. A small fountain bubbled in the afternoon sun in the center of the paved courtyard and several stone benches were place around the edges of the cobblestoned ground. Birds twittered and the occasional squirrel-like creature appeared from the bushes, only to jump back in again. The brunette took a seat with a sigh like an old man. Takeshi sat down next to him.

"Erm. So, uh, I heard your name is Takeshi." The brunette said softly. "I'm Tsuna. I'm a worker at the bathhouse."

"Nice to meet you." Takeshi replied, shaking the young boy's hand. "Is Tsuna your real name?"

The boy looked sadly up at him. "Is Takeshi _your_ real name?"

Takeshi paused. "No," he admitted. Tsuna sighed. "You know my answer."

A moment of silence passed through them. "I take it you didn't make it out of the Spirit World in time, then." Tsuna said quietly.

"Ah, no." Takeshi exhaled. "Thank you for the warning though, even if it did go to waste. You didn't get into trouble or anything because of me, did you?"

Tsuna shook his head so that his bangs flopped everywhere. "They didn't make the connection between me and you yet, even if we are both humans."

Takeshi's eyebrows shot up. "You're human?" he gasped. Tsuna nodded. "I wandered in by accident just like you did. I was moving with my parents and we got separated at the train station. The disciplinary demon Hibari caught me and Byakuran sent me to work under Reborn. He must really hate you though, since the boiler room is really hard work and anyone who's sent down there is usually someone either Byakuran or Hibari strongly dislikes."

Takeshi frowned. "But Colonello works there."

Tsuna shot him a sideways look. "Exactly."

There was something in his voice that made Takeshi reluctant to pursue an answer. The two of them sat in silence again, listening to the sound of the fountain and birds chirping among the bushes. Then Takeshi mustered up the courage to ask, "What's Hibari actually like?"

Tsuna thought it over. "Well, bluntly put, he's mean. A really angry, cold-hearted person. He works directly under Byakuran, so everybody fears him as much as they fear the boss. But nobody knows where he's from. Most workers are minor spirits from this world looking for work and some are humans trapped under Byakuran's orders. There are a lot of rumors surrounding him being some huge spirit before he lost his powers to the humans, but there's nobody to verify that. And obviously, no one's going to ask him."

Takeshi pondered the response for a moment. "I really wonder what the humans did to him."

"Wouldn't you, herbivore." A voice sneered from behind them.

Tsuna actually screamed and fell off the bench. Takeshi jumped to his feet and whipped around to find himself face to face with none other than Hibari. The raven fixed him with an ice-cold glare before punching Takeshi right in the gut, making him double over in pain, gasping for breath.

"You are not permitted to leave the sleeping quarters during the day, herbivore. You'll be properly bitten to death later for your incompetence. Now get out of my way."

Tsuna hurried over to help Takeshi to his feet. Hibari walked past them without a second glance and reached into his jacket. For a scary moment, Takeshi thought he was going to pull out his tonfas and use it against them, but Hibari simply withdrew a small pouch, which he emptied on his palm. Suddenly, little birds fluttered out from the bushes and flocked around the disciplinary demon, pecking at his open palm and settling on his shoulders.

'_He's feeding them,'_ Takeshi realized in surprise. That came as a shock. Next to him, Tsuna's mouth was also hanging from his jaw in disbelief. Hibari ignored the two stunned workers as he fed the little birds, which cheeped happily and flapped around him, nestling in his hair and singing some kind of song. Tsuna tugged at Takeshi's arm, and the two of them carefully ducked out of the garden. As they were leaving, Takeshi dared to take one last look back.

There they were again. The wings. In daylight, the stood out more clearly than they had in the dark. Jet black wings flexed lightly against Hibari's back, smooth and glossy, feathers rustling in the wind. Then, Tsuna tugged his arm and Takeshi lost the view as they moved behind the bush. They ran back across the bridge, the sky now shadowed by thick, puffy clouds hanging low against the horizon. Once they were safely inside, Tsuna breathed a sigh of relief and pushed his hair back out of his face.

"Did you see that—?"

Takeshi nodded, still somewhat in awe. "Those birds…wow."

"Yeah." Tsuna nodded fervently. "I didn't think that was possible; Hibari having a soft side."

"And the wings on his back." Takeshi added.

"What?"

"The wings," Takeshi replied. "Didn't you see them…?" Tsuna frowned. "I didn't see any wings on Hibari, Takeshi-kun."

"That's weird…" Takeshi mumbled. Was he seeing things? Tsuna peeked nervously around and whispered, "We'd better get back to bed. Maybe I'll see you around the bathhouse. I can sign up to bring you and Colonello lunch."

"Would you?" Takeshi asked, surprised at the gesture of friendship. Tsuna shrugged. "I don't mind." He said, smiling, and Takeshi couldn't help but grin back. It seemed like he'd made a new friend in this place.

"Thank you." He said.

"No problem."

* * *

><p>Takeshi would have gladly slept until he became a melted pile of goo, but after what felt like ten minutes of shutting his eyes Colonello was shaking him awake, yawning widely.<p>

"Rise and shine, kora. We've got work to do."

Takeshi rolled over and squinted at the clock on the control panel. It was 7:00pm. He sat up and rubbed his bleary eyes, reaching for his uniform again. Colonello was staggering around, digging for an extra toothbrush and toothpaste for Takeshi. They washed up under a leaky tap in the hallway, Colonello almost falling back asleep while shaving and nearly cutting his throat. Once they were clean and refreshed, the two walked back into the boiler room. It was dark, save for the glow of the burning coals. Takeshi sniffed the air. It smelled like rain.

"I checked the forecast with Reborn." Colonello said, as though reading Takeshi's mind. "There's a thunderstorm rolling in, so I need you to help me close the ventilation hatches on the roof."

There was a long ladder running up the side of the wall around the boiler leading up to a small platform hanging from the ceiling, where giant air shafts hung open. Cool air rushed in from the wide flaps. Colonello showed Takeshi how to close them, and they spent about ten minutes pushing the heavy metal pieces closed so that the rain wouldn't reach the inside of the boiler room.

"Let's get the water heated up," Colonello said, rolling up his sleeves. "Grab a shovel and we'll get that part out of the way while we wait for breakfast to come."

Barely half an hour after they'd closed the shafts, the telltale sound of rain soon came. It first started out small when they were eating their breakfast, watching the fire burn, and then the sound of thunder rolled from the distance and rain began pelting hard on the roof. A deep gong rang in the distance, signaling the opening of the bathhouse. Almost immediately, bath tokens began dropping in, and the work became so hectic that Takeshi hardly had any time to think whatsoever. Shovel coal. Mix herbs and salts. Rush around and release the steam from various pipes around. The common routine was soon falling into place.

The real crisis hit at midday.

Takeshi had been standing on an upturned bucket sending two tokens back up when the whole building shook like it had been hit by and earthquake. "Whoa!" Colonello yelled, jumping over the grab Takeshi before he fell off the pail. "What the hell was that, kora?"

Takeshi shook his head, confused. The floor rumbled again, shaking dust from the ceiling. From the sound of it, it seemed like something was happening on the floors above them. And then—

"VOIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" A man's voice boomed from above, actually loud enough to drown out the pouring rain and the sounds of the boiler to reach the two workers in the basement. Colonello's brow furrowed. "Is that a customer?" he asked. There were quieter, more muffled voices, and then the loud man spoke again.

"LET'S GET GOING, DAMN IT!"

Colonello winced, rubbing his ears. "Do we have the spirit of sound in here or something?" he complained. "Dear god, I actually pity Reborn and the rest of his crew up there." The arrival of two more bath tokens got them back to work, but within minutes they were interrupted again by the small door opening, and the unannounced arrival of three visitors. It was Reborn, Hibari, and Byakuran.

"Colonello!" Reborn called over the boiler. The blonde man turned to face the group at the door, and then, an expression Takeshi had never seen before crossed Colonello's face. First it was shock, and then pure, undisguised hatred. The blonde threw down his shovel and walked over to where they stood, almost twitching in anger.

"What are _you_ doing here?" he snarled. Takeshi thought he was speaking to Hibari, but to his surprise, Byakuran tilted his head and smiled at Colonello the way a parent would to an oblivious child.

"Simply a courteous visit, Colonello. You look like you've been working out, very fit, young man."

Colonello flexed his arm, muscles bulging from the result of hours upon hours of shoveling coal, and clenched his jaw in rage. "Get out, Byakuran," He hissed, eyes narrowed into slits and fists curling. "Before I kick you out myself."

"We're not here to talk to you, Colonello." Hibari cut in shortly. "We're here for the trespassing herbivore."

Takeshi gave a start. "Me?" he asked in confusion. "Yes, you, Takeshi-kun." Byakuran said, smiling widely at him. "We need you to assist with the bathhouse's newest customers."

"What?" Takeshi asked, stunned. "_What?_" Colonello echoed. "What the hell? You have plenty of workers upstairs, why do you need Takeshi of all people?" The blonde directed his question at Reborn, who simply shook his head once with a hard look in his eye. Hibari scowled and said, "We're wasting time. Your argument is invalid, Colonello. Herbivore, you're coming with us."

Colonello exhaled heavily and jerked his head. "Fine, assholes." He walked back over to where Takeshi stood in complete bemusement. "Go," he muttered in a low voice. "But stay on your guard. If you need anything from me, send me a message via the token wires." He gestured to the chute extending from the ceiling. Takeshi nodded. "Okay, thanks."

"Hurry up." Hibari snapped.

Takeshi fixed his uniform and walked over to where the odd group of three stood. Reborn led the way back out of the boiler room. Byakuran, smiling serenely, followed, and Hibari left the room after Takeshi. They arrived at the lift and Hibari yanked at the lever to start their ascent to the main level of the bathhouse. Along the way, Byakuran hummed to himself in apparent amusement, and Takeshi was brought back to his conversation with Tsuna.

"…_He must really hate you though, since the boiler room is really hard work and anyone who's sent down there is usually someone either Byakuran or Hibari strongly dislikes."_

_Takeshi frowned. "But Colonello works there."_

_Tsuna shot him a sideways look. "Exactly."_

He'd never seen any living being look so angry. What had happened between Byakuran and Colonello? But he had no time to think about it, because they were arriving at their destination now. And immediately, Takeshi knew something was wrong. The workers were crowded around the lift, and none of them were working. Hushed whispers stopped when Byakuran stepped out of the lift and all eyes fell on Takeshi as he walked out of the elevator after the white-haired boss.

"Reborn, get Takeshi-kun a change of clothes. We can't have him serving our customers in his work uniform, could we?" It was that amused smile again. It made Takeshi want to vomit. Reborn grabbed his arm and pulled him aside, down a narrow hall, and into a small room.

"Here," the overseer said, digging through a box and yanking out a blue yukaka similar to the one Tsuna wore at work. "Put this on and prepare yourself. Byakuran isn't going to make this easy on you. Nor are your customers."

"What's going on?" Takeshi questioned, reaching for the uniform. "Who are those people? Why am I working upstairs all of a sudden?"

Reborn exhaled in annoyance, tugging his hat down. "Byakuran's a bastard," he said. "I don't know how, but for some reason he's developed some theory about you and I think he's trying to test you out. Just remember, don't lose your temper with the customers and just do what they say. They're dangerous and so is Byakuran. We don't want you to end up as a bloody carcass on the floor."

"Who are they?" Takeshi asked quietly, folding up his uniform and handing it to Reborn, who tucked it into his jacket for safekeeping. Reborn paused and looked around before lowering his voice even more and saying, "They're the Seven Deadly Sins. You've heard of them, right?"

Takeshi felt his jaw drop. "Sins? Like Pride, Wrath, Envy, and such?"

Reborn nodded. "Along with Greed, Gluttony, and Lust and Sloth. You've got the whole set. I don't know what Byakuran's playing at, but Colonello, Lal and I will definatly be watching out for you. I've sent one of my workers to help you out and keep an eye on things. If it gets too bad, we'll step in. But keep your head in one piece and focus. Byakuran assigned this to you knowing that shit's going to go down."

"Right." Takeshi replied weakly, rolling up his sleeves and tying them back. He took a deep breath. If a challenge is what that freak Byakuran wanted to send his way, then Takeshi will meet him head-on. He was not a wimp or a pushover. Feeling his heart pound, he opened the door and stepped out of the room to meet the 'customers'. The other workers were gathered along the walls and peering out from side rooms and bath cubicles. They started to whisper amongst each other again, but stopped when Reborn came out of the room after Takeshi. They made their way through the crowd towards the back, where the larger and more spacious tubs were. Steam was gushing out of the largest cubicle, and as they drew closer, Takeshi could hear the sounds of a group talking, eating, and bathing. Standing by the wall, away from the crowd, was Tsuna.

"That boy over there is Tsuna." Reborn said quietly to him. "He'll help you out."

"Thanks." Takeshi whispered back, taking the small plastic bin that was passed over to him from one of the workers huddled by the wall. It contained a notepad, a piece of writing charcoal and a clutter of bath tokens. Tsuna waved him over and the two of them stood outside of the giant bath cubicle, calming their nerves down before going in to face the beasts.

"Thank you for helping me." Takeshi muttered to the brunette, who laughed softly despite literally shaking with fear.

"We've got to stick together, right? Let's get this over with."

The sight that greeted them was not a pretty one. Through a haze of thick steam, seven strange men sat inside of the giant tub, sloshing water around every time they moved. A tray was smashed and broken against the back of the wall, sake running down the bamboo dividers. What appeared to be small, silver knives stuck out of the floor and were scattered everywhere as well. Tsuna motioned him Takeshi closer, and they walked up to their guests.

"Welcome to the Whitespell bathhouse," Tsuna said, voice steady despite how frantic he looked. "I'm Tsuna and this is Takeshi. We'll be your servers for today."

The Seven Deadly Sins did not particularly looked like, well, _sins_, but there was something distinctive about each one of them. Sitting closest to the two was a man with long, silver-white hair and choppy bangs. He was broad-shouldered and had a haughty, arrogant look on his face. Next to him was an older man with a green mohawk. He appeared to be wearing makeup and sat in in a rather proactive way in the water. A taller, even older male with piercings and spiky black hair glared from where he sat, his eyes darting everywhere and a look on his face that clearly said he wasn't satisfied. A shorter, younger blonde with bangs covering his eyes lounged around, tossing silver knives onto the floor behind him with a lazy expression. A baby with a funny hood floated in a little blow-up pool noodle, lying on it like a rich man would. Standing in the corner appeared to be a robot of some sorts that had not entered the bath, but simply stood stock still and issued steam from the many pipes leading out of his gasmask-like face and onto his back. Finally, a man with messy black hair and faded scars all over his chest, arms, face, and torso sat at the far end of the tub, his eyes glowing red and a fierce expression on his face.

"VOIIIIIII!" the silver haired man bellowed, nearly deafening Tsuna and Takeshi as he sloshed around the tub again. "WE NEED MORE SAKE HERE, DAMN IT!"

"C-coming right up, sir." Tsuna gasped, rubbing his ringing ears. He scrawled something down on his notepad and tore the sheet off, running over to one of the frogman hanging outside of the cubicles waiting for orders. Takeshi glanced around, wondering what he could do.

"Err…would you like more hot water, sirs?" he asked.

"Obviously!" the blonde said, kicking his feet up in the water. "A Prince should not have to deal with bathwater at a peasants' temperature."

"Is it going to cost us?" the baby demanded, his voice much deeper than Takeshi expected.

"Well, it depends on if you're only getting more hot water or requesting bath salts or herbs."

"Oh my," said the green-haired man, swimming over to take a good look at Takeshi. "You're so smart, aren't you? What a pretty young lad you are." His expression gave the baseball player goosebumps. Tsuna had still not yet returned, but when Takeshi backed away in uncertainty of what to do, he caught a glimpse of the group of people hanging out on the balcony overseeing the area he was working in.

Byakuran was there, leaning against the rail with an irritating look of amusement on his face again. Hibari stood next to him, looking bored. Reborn and Lal were shadowed in the back, Rebon watching intently and Lal looking somewhat worried. For some reason, it made Takeshi mad to see Hibari standing with Byakuran. In fact, it downright pissed him off. Gritting his teeth, Takeshi took a deep breath and pictured the Sins as customers he'd helped serve at his father's sushi shop.

"I'd recommend to Hokkaido bath herbs and salts. We've just had a new stock come in and they're very fresh. It's our specialty, guaranteed to help reduce stress and tire of the muscles and relax the mind with the scents of the natural outdoors. Would you gentlemen be interested?"

In the corner of his peripheral vision, Takeshi saw Byakuran's jaw drop in indignation. He smirked to himself. The Hokkaido batch takes weeks to come in when ordered, and cost an arm and a leg. Hibari raised an eyebrow at Takeshi's nerve and Reborn seemed to grin despite himself. "I don't want to waste too much money on this stupid bath." The baby complained. The blonde gave a funny laugh and made a little wave in water at the child's direction.

"Ushiushiushi! I demand the best shit you've got, peasant! A prince must always bathe in the finest herbs and salts!"

"This might be helpful for my complexion~" the green-haired man mused, smoothening out his cheeks. The silver-haired man rolled his eyes and bellowed at Takeshi, "JUST GRAB US SOME DAMNED WATER!" Takeshi hurried over to the side of the wall, reaching into his tub for the most expensive token. He remembered Colonello telling him that the token wires were located inside of the walls, where they were then sent up to a central pulley system that would bring it down to the boiler room. He thumped around the side of the wall, looking for the wire, and then a piece of the bamboo popped open to reveal a thick cable with a clip on the end. The customers were getting rowdy again, splashing water and chucking knives everywhere, so Takeshi hurriedly clipped the token on and gave a hearty jerk. The zip line shot up into the wall and vanished into darkness.

"VOIIIII! WHERE'S THE SAKE, DAMN IT?"

"Ushiushiushi! The prince demands that the noisy long-haired bitch stays quiet!"

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?"

"Nuuuu, you young men are just so spirited!"

"Shut the fuck up, trash!" It was the angry, dark-haired man who spoke this time. He had remained relatively quiet when the others had been arguing and throwing stuff around, but apparently he had been a ticking time bomb waiting to explode. "VOI! WHAT DID YOU SAY NOW, BOSS?"

"Don't yell at the boss like that, Squalo!" The piercing man bellowed, standing up and sending a wave of water over the edge. The long-haired man, Squalo, sneered and turned to face the Sin. "I SAY WHAT THE FUCK I WANT, LEVITHAN! SO SHUT IT!"

"You two are being too noisy." The baby snapped, paddling away from the waves. The blonde tipped the pool noodle over and shrieked with laughter when the baby fell off. "Ushiushiushi! Mammon can't swim, can he?" The baby's head popped up on the surface, spluttering, "Of course I can, stupid Belphagor! How dare you act in such a childish manner!"

"Now, now, boys," the green-haired man said serenely. "SHUT THE HELL UP, LUSSURIA!" everybody but the dark-haired man bellowed. At the edge of the tub, Takeshi didn't know what to do. Their argument was getting worse and worse, and Tsuna still was nowhere to be seen. What was he going to do? "Uhm, gentlemen, let's calm down and take this easy, shall we? The water's coming soon."

Right on cue, the opposite side of the wall buckled and opened up to allow a small wooden shape similar to a dike descend from its position in the wall and stop over the bath so it could allow water to run into the tub. Also on cue, Squalo's temper snapped and he punched the other guy, Levithan, right in the face. Levithan flailed madly and flopped backwards into the tub, splashing. Lussuria gave a girly squeal as water washed over his hair. Mammon went under again and Belphagor spat out a mouthful of bathwater.

"Gross!"

"You bastard!"

"YOU WERE ASKING FOR IT, BITCH!"

"Boys, stop this already. Darlings~! Listen to Lussria papa~!"

"You damn trash!"

Takeshi wasn't sure what did it, but at that moment, his restraint broke. Maybe it was because of the Seven Sins acting like total three year olds and making a mess of the place, or because Byakuran had the nerve to laugh two stories above when water splashed Takeshi, or maybe it was because Hibari's eyes had narrowed and he'd scoffed at the scene, turning his head to one side. Whatever it was, Takeshi snapped.

"That's enough!" He bellowed, and for a heart-stopping moment, everything went still. Then, there was an earth-shattering rumble from beneath them and the dike exploded. Water gushed forth, completely enveloping the Seven Sins and Takeshi in one giant tidal wave. There were panicked and startled yells from the onlookers (and especially Byakuran) as they all vanished into the giant bubble of water.

Inside, Takeshi was calm. There was a strange feeling of nostalgic and warmth as the clear, slightly salty water washed over him. He could distinguish the shapes of the Sins flailing about in the liquid, but at the moment, he didn't care. It felt _great_ being underwater, and for a strange moment, he was thrown back into one of his favourite memories as a child. He'd been around four, five years old, and he'd gone down to the river in the valley where he lived. It was a quiet place, so there was rarely anybody around when he went down to play. To Takeshi's surprise that day, he found a small boy his age wading through ankle-deep waters by himself, birds twittering by his head. Takeshi had never seen him before, nor did he know where this child came from, but being the bubbly, optimistic boy he was, he'd dashed forward and introduced himself to the startled boy, and grabbed the small dark-haired child's hand and pulled him over to play by the riverbank.

"_I love the water, it's so nice and cool and it's great to play in during a hot summer day! What about you? What do you like?"_

"_I like…birds. And this river. It's very clean."_

"_Birds are cool! I'm glad you like this river, you should come by more often. By the way, what's that type of bird on your shoulder called? It's really pretty."_

"_Huh? Oh, the birds? They're sky—"_

The water was flowing away now. Takeshi opened his eyes and the long-lost memory blurred away as the wall of water he'd constructed around them slowly washed away at his lack of concentration. The whole cubicle was soaked, the dike was lying in splinters around and the bath tokens were floating away in the knee deep water spewing from the wall. The Seven Sins were lying on the floor or in the tub, coughing up water or wringing out their clothes. Which, somehow, they had managed to yank on themselves while floating around in Takeshi's water bubble.

"WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?"

"Ushiushiushi, it was water, Squalo."

"VOI! I KNOW THAT!"

"Huh, funny, I feel a lot cleaner."

"And refreshed. Are you darlings feeling it too?"

There was a moment of silence as the Sins frowned and lolled around a little bit. Takeshi stood, dripping wet, but did not dare to speak to them or offer any assistance. He valued his life a lot more than doing business for Byakuran. And then, to his horror, a hand clamped down on Takeshi's shoulder and spun him around so that he was face to face with the angry, scarred man.

"Ah, boss! What're you doing?"

"Xanxus-chan, he's just a boy, dear~! Don't hurt him~!"

"Byakuran will probably make us pay him if we ruin a worker of his, boss."

The dark-haired man said nothing. He looked Takeshi right in the eye and for a moment, the baseball player felt like he was being x-rayed. The large hands left his shoulder and the Wrath—Xanxus—grabbed his coat before gesturing his fellow Sins towards the door, leaving Takeshi in utter confusion.

"Mammon," he said, "Pay them with a tip."

The baby called Mammon's jaw dropped. The others imitated him. "Boss…w-why…?" Xanxus looked back and arched an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're going to leave this place without at least owing them the right amount after being cleansed by somebody as powerful as this guy." He jerked his head in Takeshi's direction.

"Eh?" Takeshi asked. "Huh?" the Seven sins echoed. Xanxus looked like he wanted to smack his fellow sins, but instead, he turned to Takeshi with a mildly surprised look on his face. "What's with that expression?" he asked the confused teen.

"Ah, I just thought, I might have misheard you," Takeshi offered in a light, careful voice. "You referred to me as 'powerful', or something along those lines." Xanxus cocked an eyebrow. "So you don't know." He grunted. "Fine by me." He rummaged in his pocket and threw something in Takeshi's direction. With his unnerving baseball skills, the teen caught the small object in his palm. It was a small, silver bullet.

"I'm the Sin of Wrath, boy. Fire and anger is my domain. If you ever need any help you don't want to dirty your hands on…I'll figure something out for you."

Takeshi looked up at the scarred man and tucked the bullet away into his yukata. "Thanks," he said weakly. The Sin jerked his head a little and the seven of them vanished into thin air, scattering like the mist in the wind. Then, a large pile of gold materialized from the ground in front of Takeshi and fell all over the place, gleaming in the brightly lit bathhouse. It was a _lot_ of money.

Suddenly, the entire bathhouse was cheering. Takeshi jumped in surprise as all the other customers, workers, spirits and frogmen started hollering and clapping and stamping their feet. Tsuna rushed back, looking frantic but desperately relieved when he found Takeshi alright and began spilling apologies left right and center for leaving him behind to deal with the Sins (which Takeshi waved off). Byakuran had vanished the gold in a flick of his hand and had cast Takeshi a cold, deathly glare before disappearing in a mass of white dust himself. Reborn was shaking his head in amusement, giving Takeshi a rare smile before walking off the balcony was well. Lal, too, gave an approving nod of her head and followed Reborn.

But Takeshi's eyes were fore Hibari, and Hibari only. The raven was standing quite still by the rail, leaning over it just enough to see Takeshi in the crowd. His expression was unreadable, but he didn't look mad. In fact, Hibari looked very much like a lost child, and the look on his face was so adorable that Takeshi couldn't help but grin widely in his direction before waving up at him. Hibari blinked a little in surprise, and to Takeshi's excitement, actually blushed and looked away.

'_He's beautiful,"_ Takeshi thought. And at that moment, amidst the cheers, the crowding, Tsuna laughing with him and Reborn and Lal congratulating him on a job well done, feeling the silver bullet tucked safely on an inside pocket and the wonderful view of Hibari standing on the floor above, Takeshi couldn't keep the elated smile off his face any longer.

'_I think I love Hibari.'_

Takeshi closes his eyes and laughs.

* * *

><p>Chapter Four is up~ Yay! This one was an extremely long chapter (by my standards) and took three days to finish and edit properly ^^" Wahh, how exciting~ Coming up in Chapter Five: Colonello and Byakuran's past, which lead up to their current hatred for each other, as well as the appearance of a certain pineapple. Woot. If you can guess which role pineapple plays I'll make you a cupcake.<p>

Thank you for reading! Reviews and comments are much appreciated!

-BlackStar


	5. Chapter 5

One Summer's Day

Hello everyone~ So. Chapter 5 will be the turning point in the story for both Takeshi and Hibari's relationship (which is currently non-existent, haha) and for the whole plot as well. Pinapple's debut is also in this chapter, as well as an insight to Colonello and Byakuran's past, which will be important later on in the story. At least, I think so. Well, anyway, 8018 fans, please be patient; the romance will come up soon :D

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Chapter Five<p>

The early morning air was cool and crisp. Birds chirped in the distance and clouds rolled in from the far horizon. It would rain as soon as the clouds reached the village, but at the moment, Takeshi was sitting on the roof outside of the boiler room, dressed in a tank top and shorts, sitting barefooted with a mug of cold tea in his hand (he'd politely refused alcohol from Colonello) and just simply enjoying the peace and quiet. Order had been restored by Reborn and Lal once they made their way downstairs, and Hibari's presence just added to the usual discipline in the bathhouse. The floors were mopped, the frogmen repaired the shattered dike, Byakuran made off with the gold and all was well again.

"Hey, you cold up there?"

Takeshi turned as Colonello popped his head through the ventilation hatch, colourful bobby pins stuck in his hair to keep his bangs back. "Naw, I'm good." Takeshi replied, taking a sip of green tea. Colonello made a noise in his throat and shoved one of the metal flaps open, bringing up a kettle, a bottle of beer and a large plate with two giant steamed buns on it.

"Here," he said, holding out the plate to Takeshi. "I went down to the kitchens to get one for you, kora. Good work."

"Thanks," Takeshi said, smiling as he took on of the giant buns. "I'm just glad everything turned out okay."

Colonello snorted and sat down next to the teen on the roof as well, taking a swig of beer and biting down into his bun. "You did a number on Byakuran, you did. Drained him of his whole stock of Hokkaido herbs and salts. I must say, I'm impressed you thought of that."

"Maa, maa…I was only offering it to the customers." Takeshi said, scratching the back of his neck. "Besides, they were rich. They left behind more than enough gold." Colonello just laughed. "Like I said before, Byakuran is really stingy. He's filthy rich because of this bathhouse, but he likes to save and hide his treasures. He's a terribly greedy spirit. He'll do anything to get money."

Takeshi bit into his bun as well, tasting salted pork and a mixture of yummy vegetables and seasoning. It was really tasty. "Ne, Colonello, you know a lot about Byakuran, don't you?"

Colonello gave him a funny look. "Not really. Why would you say that?"

Takeshi paused, chewing. "You just seem…to hate Byakuran a lot. And yes, I know a lot of people hate him, but the expression you had on your face when you saw him…I didn't think it would be possible for someone to get so _angry_."

Colonello didn't answer for a while. He chewed thoughtfully, apparently lost in thought. Takeshi was halfway done his bun and was about to tell Colonello that he didn't have to answer him when the blonde stunned him into silence with his sudden reply.

"Byakuran is my dad, kora."

Takeshi choked on his bite and Colonello had to thump him hard on the back. "Byakuran's _what_?" Takeshi gasped, tears in his eyes. Colonello's expression was neutral as he handed Takeshi his mug, which had been refilled with tea.

"That white-haired freak is my dad. That's why I know so much about him. I grew up with that bastard for about sixteen years before he threw me down in the boiler room and put me to work."

"How—how is that possible?" Takeshi asked weakly. This was really shocking. Colonello turned away and stared off into the distance. The sun was starting to rise, but the sky was still dark out because of the clouds.

"Okay, the story's a bloody pathetic one and I'd appreciate it very much if you don't say it again to anyone else. The only other person who knows this is Reborn, and Byakuran himself. Hibari might now, but I don't think he cares enough to actually remember. Byakuran built this bathhouse and I grew up in it, along with all the other workers who have been here for a long time already. I didn't know much about how this place was run back then, seeing that I was still only a kid. When I got older, I started interacting with the workers more, and then I met her."

Colonello shot Takeshi a slightly wistful look. "I met Lal."

"Lal?" Takeshi asked, confused. Colonello nodded. "She was the most gorgeous person I've ever met. She knew I was Byakuran's son and the first thing she told me was that I was a pompous brat and a no-good kid, but I liked her a lot. She was hardworking, smart, pretty, and just about everything that I found awesome. Eventually, I became friends with her, and along came Reborn, and it was the three of us, just hanging out after work and eating fried dumplings together on the roof after hours."

Takeshi sat still as he listened to Colonello's story. The blonde seemed a little sad as he spoke about his past. He didn't know Colonello liked Lal. He wondered what happened.

"And then, Byakuran found out about us. He warned me not to go around looking for the two of them again, because I was his son and I had a name to uphold. But I didn't listen. I loved Lal too much to want to leave behind our friendship and the time I spent with her, and when Byakuran found out, he was furious. He disowned me and removed my name before throwing me down in the boiler room for the rest of my life, making me a slave to that stupid machine. But what I can't forgive is what he did to Lal. She was simply a hired worked at the time. She wasn't under a contract. But Byakuran not only made her sign that damned sheet of paper, he stole her real name and replaced her memory of me. To her, I was never once her friend, and I never once confessed to her, and I will simply remain as some worker who keeps the fires stoked in the boiler room under the main floors of the bathhouse."

Colonello took a swig of beer and chomped down on the bun, munching angrily. "I don't care what anyone says. I'll get myself out of this hellhole, no matter what, kora. I'll do anything to get Lal's name and memory back. Even if I have to go through Byakuran for it."

Takeshi sat quietly, sipping his tea and listened to the end of Colonello's story. "I'm sorry," he said finally. "I didn't mean to ask about something so personal."

Colonello gave a small laugh and reached over to ruffle Takeshi's hair. "Don't be." He replied. "Anyone who gets sent down here into the boiler room is definatly disliked by Byakuran. We're not so different, you and I. And speaking of personal issues, I heard you pulled something incredible on the Seven Sins upstairs today."

"Eh?" Takeshi asked, confused.

"A giant bubble of water encasing one of the world's most powerful dark forces just so they would shut up because a worker found their arguments annoying." Colonello gave him a crooked grin. "That's something, isn't it, kora?"

"I—I guess," Takeshi said, scratching his cheek. "I don't know what I did, honestly. The water just calmed everything down, so in the end, I probably didn't hurt anybody."

Colonello surveyed him for a moment over the rim of his beer bottle, and then he set it down and looked Takeshi right in the eye with a serious expression on his face. "Hey kid, do you know what the element of water is?"

"The element of water?" Takeshi asked. Colonello crossed his legs and said lightly, "Water is one of the most purifying substances in this universe, kora. It gives life and it cleanses things. What you pulled in the bathhouse with the Sins not only washed away their burden of wrongdoings, but it also changed something inside those men. That's something big. Nobody just changes because they took a bath. But your water, your water was special, kid. It did some good things today, kora. Remember that."

"_I'm the Sin of Wrath, boy. Fire and anger is my domain. If you ever need any help you don't want to dirty your hands on…I'll figure something out for you." _

Takeshi sat back and thought about the last words Xanxus said to him and felt the silver bullet on the inside of his pocket. He doubted that the Sin of Wrath would just walk around handing out party favours to small-time contract workers in a bathhouse, along with the promise of lending him a hand if he ever needed it. "But I don't know what I did," Takeshi said, somewhat frustrated. "I don't know how I made that bubble. I'm just a human, I don't have any powers."

Colonello rubbed his chin and finished off his drink. "Yeah," he muttered, "I don't have an answer for that either."

"Only herbivores can't find proper answers, Colonello."

The two workers jumped in surprise and spun around to see Hibari standing on the other side of the roof, arms crossed and his usual black jacket flapping around his shoulders. He walked forwards and pointed at Takeshi. "You, herbivore. I need to talk to you."

"Why?" Takeshi asked nervously, heart pounding in his ribcage. Hibari shot him an annoyed look. "Just shut up and walk."

Colonello gave Takeshi a little push and mouthed the words 'asshole' at Hibari. The teen staggered to his feet and followed Hibari to the other end of the rooftop, where the raven proceeded to climb down a ladder on the side of the wall and jump down onto the landing of a small balcony. Takeshi followed, almost losing his footing on the landing.

"So…err…what is it, Hibari?" Takeshi asked.

The raven did not answer immediately either. Instead, his onxy eyes bored deep into Takeshi's dark ones like he was searching for something. The look reminded Takeshi of the way Xanxus stared at him after he nearly drowned the Sins in the water bubble. Hibari made a little noise in the back of his throat and said simply, "You look like a human, but you act like a spirit."

"Huh?" Takeshi asked, almost feeling stupid at his own reply. Why was it that he never knew what was going on with everything people said here? Hibari gave him a weird look and said, "I meant, you're different. There's something you have that normal humans don't."

"Uh, really?"

Hibari looked away. "You're strange." He concluded.

"Thanks." Takeshi replied. Silence followed the short conversation. The baseball lover could swear tumbleweed just blew by at the awkwardness. "So…um…how's work, Hibari?" Takeshi asked, almost facepalming at his weak attempt to continue the chat. Apparently Hibari thought it was a pitiful attempt too.

"I hate work."

"Oh, really?"

"There are too many herbivores crowding around this place. I should have them all bitten to death."

"Maa, maa," Takeshi said lightly, grinning down at the raven. "Don't be so mean to them."

Hibari stared him down. "Why not? You can't possibly care for everybody in this stupid place."

"It's called being nice, Hibari. Haven't you ever been nice to anybody before?"

"Being nice is a useless thing."

"Why are you such a cold person, Hibari?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"You were nice to those birds out there in the garden."

The raven paused. "Birds are different." He said. "Birds are independent little things with their own way of survival."

"Much like the workers," Takeshi pointed out. "They're just trying to survive too."

"You're a weird one. Did all that water damage your head today?"

"Naw, just pointing out the truth."

"Truths are inconvenient." The raven was looking him right in the eye again. He was so close that Takeshi could see the flecks of gold in the otherwise jet black eyes.

"Love is inconvenient too." The words were spoken before Takeshi could stop himself.

"What?" Hibari asked, nose wrinkling cutely in confusion.

"Nothing," Takeshi whispered back, and before his intuition could scream for him to _think_, he leaned in and kissed Hibari.

For a split second, Takeshi felt Hibari tense up in shock and he almost saw his life flash before his eyes, but then, unexpectedly, the shorter of the two relaxed and actually leaned forwards into the kiss. A thrill went through the pit of his stomach as Takeshi cautiously reached out a hand to touch Hibari's face before moving back to tangle long fingers in Hibari's soft hair. The raven stood a little higher on tip toe so he could wrap his arms around Takeshi's neck. Warmed by the surprising act, the baseball player gently wrapped an arm around Hibari's waist, pulling him in a little more. The kiss was hesitant and a little awkward at first, but then Hibari took the initiative and suddenly pushed his tongue past Takeshi's lips to trace the inside of his mouth, and Takeshi swore that his legs had turned into jelly at that point.

Eventually the pulled away for air, Hibari's thin arms still hanging loosely around Takeshi's neck as the baseball player rested his hands comfortably on Hibari's waist. The sky was getting lighter now, even with the dark clouds, and a roll of thunder could be heard in the distance.

"I'm leaving now." Hibari said shortly, removing himself from Takeshi's hold and tugged his jacket tighter to him. It suddenly felt too cold for the taller teen.

"Alright," he said, somewhat dejectedly. "I'll see you around, I suppose."

"Don't count on it. I have a mission from Byakuran and I'll be gone before sunrise."

"Oh." Takeshi said. "…okay. Good luck."

"What is with that herbivore expression on your face?"

Takeshi blushed. "I'm not a herbivore. I'm just happy that…uh…well…I'm just happy." He laughed a little and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

Hibari gave him a long, sideways look, but his lip twitched like he was hiding a smile. "You are different, you know? You're a human, yet when you kissed me, I didn't even think about biting you to death. Have I ever met you before?"

Takeshi tilted his head. "I wouldn't think so, Hibari. Like you said, I'm just…human." Hibari frowned, and then suddenly leaned in and pressed a kiss lightly to the corner of Takeshi's mouth. Then he turned and abruptly vaulted over the railing of the balcony. Takeshi gasped and threw himself at the rail as well, leaning over it just in time to see the disciplinary spirit before he landed.

The wings were there.

They fluttered weakly as Hibari fell through the air and landed with a resounding thump on the roof of another part of the building. The raven glanced up at Takeshi one last time, who waved, and the other set off into the morning light. Takeshi watched him go until he couldn't see the Hibari anymore. His lips tingled pleasantly.

Colonello was still waiting for him when Takeshi climbed back up the ladder onto the roof. "What did Hibari want, kora?" he asked. "He said he didn't think I was human, even though I look like one." Takeshi replied, smiling a little to himself. Colonello made a noise in his throat and picked up the empty plate. "Sounds like something Hibari would say. C'mon, it's time for bed. It's been a long day, kora." Takeshi helped the blonde gather their things and carefully shut the giant hatch after him as he climbed back down the ladder into the boiler room. He hadn't felt tired for the most part, but the moment his head touched his pillow, Takeshi was out like a light.

* * *

><p>Byakuran rolled his heavy ring between his thin, bone-like fingers, quietly watching the burning coals in the fireplace. It filled the room with a warm glow that did not reach the white-haired boss. He leaned back in his comfortable chair and glanced out the window. It was starting to rain, and whatever sunlight normally came out at this time of day was obscured by dark clouds. If he knew it that it was going to rain so hard, he probably wouldn't have sent Hibari out on that mission so soon. But then again, it was necessary that the raven was not at the bathhouse when a certain guest was going to arrive soon. And speaking of arriving—<p>

"You shouldn't frown so much, boss. It'll give you wrinkles, kufufufu."

Byakuran raised a delicate eyebrow, still looking out the window. "I do not normally permit anyone to enter my office without permission."

"Oh?" the voice was amused now, and Byakuran didn't have to look to know that the other was smiling. He stood up and slid his ring back onto his finger, glaring into the shadows. "I haven't got all day. Come out now and we can discuss our business."

There was a pause, and then, the air in the room grew heavy. A thick mist began gathering in the corner and started to form the shape of a man. A head, shoulders, chest, torso, and two long legs slowly came into focus, and finally, a tall, odd looking man stepped out into view in the dimly lit office. He had a thin face, a small, cunning smile and several piercings in both ears. He was dressed in long boots, slim pants and wore a double-breasted coat slightly too big on him. His hair was cut strangely so that the back stuck up like a fruit, but the majority of his hair was tied back on a low ponytail that fell down to his waist. His eyes were two frightful chips of ice, one a dark blue and the other a glowing, demonic red that had strange shadows drifting into non-existent shapes inside his pupil.

"You name?" Byakuran asked curtly, his own purple orbs giving the man a once-over.

"Mukuro," the other replied quietly. "Otherwise known as the faceless spirit."

Byakuran nodded. "I see. Mukuro it is. I am Byakuran, the owner of the Whitespell bathhouse. If you haven't guessed already, I'm requesting your help."

Mukuro grinned devilishly and tapped his lip in thought. "What is it that you need?"

Byakuran reached over to a small envelope on his desk and tossed it over to Mukuro, who caught it and tore the package open. Several photos fell out. The blue-haired man looked them over and raised an eyebrow. "Who are they?"

Byakuran scoffed. "Reborn and Lal, workers in my bathhouse. Hardly a threat, but you'll want to watch out for them while you work."

Murkuo hummed and held out another one. "This young man?"

"Hibari. The disciplinary demon. My direct underling. You'll be taking good care of him, won't you, Mukuro?"

The spirit laughed softly and traced a finger over the raven's face in the picture. "Definatly," he said in a low voice, amusement dancing in his eyes. He held up the last picture. "The blonde?"

"My son, Colonello." Byakuran said offhandedly.

"And what of his fate?"

"Kill him if you want. I don't care. It's the other one I want you to take care of, specifically."

"Kufufufu…what harsh words. A father who cares not of his son? And who may this other be?"

"Takeshi. You'll do my bidding well, won't you, Mukuro?"

The faceless spirit smiled serenely and pocketed the photos. "Of course, boss. Whatever you wish."

Byakuran smiled. "Good."

At the hands of this monster, he already knew that Takeshi would not be expected to live beyond three days.

* * *

><p>Yay, done Chapter Five :D This is somewhat irrelevant, but I chose Mukuro to be No Face because I honestly think he's perfect for the role. He's the Mist Guardian, and he can change his appearance anytime he wants and he creates illusions. No Face has no defined face either, almost like nobody knew who he really was, like Mukuro, and in <em>Spirited Away<em> No Face also created the illusion of being a wealthy customer and deceived all the workers. Also, both of them were excellent villains.

I just felt like I had to explain that point. I don't choose characters randomly, but I felt that of all the match-ups I made, Mukuro's character makes the most sense. ANYWAY~! Thank you for reading! Reviews are much appreciated! Chapter Six will be out soon, promise~

-BlackStar


	6. Chapter 6

One Summer's Day

It's Chapter 6! This story has moved fast, hasn't it~ ^^" in any case, I am glad that it's going so smoothly. Mukuro appeared in the last chapter and we were left on a sort-of cliffhanger (heh heh) wondering why Byakuran hated Takeshi so much and what Mukuro's real purpose was. Personally, I'm more frightened for Colonello's safety (sigh). Too much hassle. On another note, I suspect this story will go on for maybe three-four more chapters…I didn't want it to be too long :D

**Disclaimer: **Disclaimer: I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

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><p>Chapter 6<p>

_He was running along the river, humming a tuneless little song as he poked around the soft earth by the water's edge for stones, small pebbles, shells and crayfish. It was another hot summer day. The sun's rays were merciless as they beat down the boy's back and neck, tanning the smooth skin. But the water was refreshing and cool, sparkling in the afternoon light and crystal clear._

_He loved it here. It was a beautiful place._

"_Did you get anything?"_

_He looked over to see his friend standing by him, several polished pebbles held in his small hands. The other child was about his age, perhaps a little older but a little shorter in height, a quiet expression on his face as he raised his free hand to shield his dark eyes from the sun. He smiled._

"_Yeah! I got this really pretty stone!" he held up a little rock that flashed different colours when held up in the light._

"_It is nice," the other agreed. He grinned even wider and grabbed the other boy's hand, dropping his stone into his palm. "Here, I'll give it to you!"_

"_B-but—"_

"_Keep it! Add it to your collection! I just hope it's beautiful enough," he said, laughing a little and scratching the back of his head. The small boy ducked his head, smiling at the present in his hand._

"_Thank you."_

_The image rippled before him, like a heatwave, and then, he was standing by the water's edge again, but this time, there was no bright afternoon sun and no childish atmosphere. It was evening, and the setting sun cast a bloody glow across the clouded sky, making the clouds look dark and angry. He looked down at the familiar childhood sanctuary, but the image that presented itself to him froze his heart._

_The river was black. The clear, fresh water was covered in slick, dark sludge that swarmed through the river, gathering in clumps and a gooey mess along the brook's edge, poisoning the plants and choking the small animals that came by for a drink. He was shaking in shock. How on earth was this possible? What happened to the beautiful stream he used to play by?_

"_It's polluted."_

_He spun around, and to his shock, saw his friend standing knee-deep in the black slush, looking pale, ill, and a little older than before, narrow eyes glaring at the mess in the river. Clearly some time had passed since the last memory of them playing in the waters._

"_What happened here?" he asked in a strangled voice. "Why is the river so dirty?"_

_His friend scowled. "I don't know. It's suffocating me. I don't appreciate this type of environment. I can't stay here. I'll be going now."_

"_W-wait!" he cried, reaching out for his friend. He slipped on the bank, and plunged right into the black waters. It gurgled and he sank waist-deep into the thick, mud-like substance. The overpowering smell of tar filled his nose. "This…this is—"_

"_Oil." The raven said, looking down. "This river is filled with oil from a spill. This place is dead now."_

"_I-impossible," he gasped, looking down. It couldn't be. This memorable place. His home._

"_I cannot stay here any longer. Goodbye."_

"_Wait!"_

_Wings. They were wide and majestic, beating lightly like a heartbeat with its feathers ruffling in the wind. They were black, an inky, deep colour that seemed to suck all the light around it in. They blended perfectly with the oil spilled in the river, as though they were covered with the substance itself._

"_Kyo—"_

_The wings beat once, and in a whirl of feathers and droplets of oil, everything faded into black._

* * *

><p>"Toss me the oiling can! I need to grease this damned knob before I can turn the stupid thing!"<p>

"Got it!" Takeshi yelled, reaching into Colonello's tool box and pulled out a small, kettle-like object filled with black liquid. He stuck his head under part of the boiler and yelled out, "I'm sliding it over to you!"

Colonello reached out and caught the small bottle in one hand while he poked around with the cover under the machine. "Fanks." he called out in a muffled voice, shaking a few drops of grease onto the rod that connected the knob to the pressure valve. The blonde grabbed the brass handle and gave several harsh pulls. There was suddenly a loud hissing noise, and hot steam came spilling out of the side of the pipe into Takeshi's face.

"Whoa!"

"Yush!" Colonello yelled in glee, dragging himself out from under the boiler and slid the can back to Takeshi. The teen caught the can and was in the process of placing it back in the toolbox when the little trapdoor slid open and Reborn climbed into the workroom, holding his fedora in place.

"Reborn!" Takeshi said in surprise.

"Waf are oo doing 'ere?" Colonello asked, finally able to extract his foot from the tight space in between the bottom of the boiler and the floor. He spat out a few bolts that he'd kept in his mouth for safekeeping and cleared his throat. "What are you doing here?"

Reborn's mouth was set in a thin line as he gestured towards the little doorway again. There was a strange expression on his face, one of weary caution and silent warning. "I'm here to introduce a new worker. He's Byakuran's next apprentice and will be helping out with the chores in the bathhouse."

The door slid open, and a tall, young man with long blue hair ducked into the room with a smile on his face. "Hello there, I'm Mukuro. It's a pleasure to meet you." His grin widened, showing smooth white teeth. Takeshi stared up at him, momentarily stunned by the man's strange eyes before he remembered his manners and hastened to shake the other's hand.

"My name is Takeshi. Nice to meet you."

And he felt it. The moment he grasped hands with Mukuro, a strange feeling moved up his arm. The other's cold hand sent shivers down his spine and his legs weakened like jelly. Mukuro smiled even more as he pumped the teen's hand up and down, although it looked more like a leer from a closer distance. Just like his meeting with Byakuran, Takeshi got a dreadful vibe from the man. With the white-haired boss he'd felt despair and weakness. Now, in front of Mukuro, his entire being was filled with a strange sense of hopelessness and loneliness. The feeling of losing hope in a desperate situation.

"Hi, I'm Colonello," the blonde suddenly interjected, shoving Takeshi out of the way and right into Reborn's arms. "It's cool to meet you too. What position have you taken up, Mukuro?" There was a very tense moment where both males continued to shake each other's hand while they were also appearing to be attempting to break each other's fingers. Takeshi shivered, and to his surprise, Reborn carefully moved in front of the teen without taking his arm off Takeshi's shoulders, shielding him from Mukuro's view. Now that he'd lost physical contact with blunette, the baseball player didn't even realize how cold he felt when he had been shaking hands with him. It was impossible to feel cold in the boiler room.

"Oh, I'm working as an Overseer trainee." Mukuro replied. The blonde clenched his jaw and forced a smile. "Well, that's fascinating. I'm sure Reborn will look out for you, won't he?"

"Feel free to ask for help, Mukuro. I'll always be around." Reborn said crisply, though Takeshi did not miss the underlying tone of warning in the fedora-wearing worker's reply. It was almost as though Colonello was stating that Reborn would keep his eye out on Mukuro, and the Overseer himself was confirming it.

Mukuro beamed radiantly. "I see. I look forward to working with you all. Well, I shan't linger upon your territory any longer. See you sometime, Colonello. Goodbye, Takeshi."

With that, Mukuro swept out of the room with a flip of his long blue hair. Colonello gagged. Reborn gave Takeshi a gentle push towards the blonde and muttered in a low voice, "Watch yourselves. This guy is a freak. The first thing he says to me after 'hello' is 'can I go see the boiler room'. He's obviously here for a reason and I don't think it's for any of that freak of a boss' trainee programs."

With those friendly words, Reborn hurried out of the room after Mukuro. Takeshi stood still, slightly shaken by the whirl of events that just happened. There was a different kind of fear brewing inside of him now. When he'd face the Seven Sins, it had been worry and confusion. With Mukuro, it felt like he was gearing up for a losing battle. Who _was_ that guy?

"Hey, let's get working, kora." Colonello said quietly, giving Takeshi's shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "I'll watch out for you."

"Watch out for me?" Takeshi asked quizzically. Colonello gave him a funny look. "Of course, if that freak is going to be around, I have to make sure that you're safe with me, at least."

"B-but why? It's not like he's here because of me…" Takeshi trailed off. Colonello gave him a long, slightly defeated look. "…is he?" Takeshi finished in a whisper, a lump forming in his stomach.

"You probably didn't see because Reborn was standing in front of you," Colonello said. "The whole time I was talking to him, that guy's weird eye was looking straight at you."

* * *

><p>It rained most of the day. The sound of raindrops pitt-patting over the ventilation hatches was a small, rhythmic comfort to the teen the whole day as he shoveled coal, ground up salts, mixed herbs and dumped more coal into the boiler. His hands were getting used to this gruff work. He'd had callouses before from holding a katana, but now there were nearly twice as much on his palms and fingers from the endless hours of holding a shovel and a pestle in his hands. He'd gotten two burns, a small one on his wrist from bumping against one of the pipes and a larger one on his forearm, which was blistering and swelling slightly by midday. Colonello gave him an ice pack to cool it down during lunch time, but the ice had melted too quickly for it to be any real help at all.<p>

Lal brought their lunch down today because Tsuna was busy helping Reborn. Colonello laughed, joked, and conversed with her like they were best friends. However, as he munched on his tempura, Takeshi couldn't help but notice that Lal always seemed a bit distant with the blonde, always, as though she didn't mind Colonello's presence but couldn't care less about him. The blonde talked and smiled like always, but now that he knew their past, Takeshi caught a faint look of longing and regret in the blonde's clear eyes. His hatred for Byakuran increased tenfold. What kind of a father would treat his son in such a terrible way?

It was the early morning hours when the last bathhouse guests had finally left, and Takeshi was eating dinner with Colonello when the sliding door opened for the second time that day. This time, Hibari climbed in.

"Hibari!" Takeshi said in surprise, almost dropping the tofu he was holding in between his chopsticks. "What are you doing here?"

Colonello raised an eyebrow in surprise as he glanced at the raven over the rim of his soup bowl, but he didn't say anything. Hibari walked over to where they sat. For the first time, the disciplinary demon looked tired and drained. His face was pale and his lips looked blue. His hair was ruffled, the back sticking up in a disorganized mess. He was quiet, a rather un-Hibari like manner. Usually, he'd have a comment or two about the heat or herbivores. Worried, Takeshi got to his feet and reached out to touch the raven's arm. "Hey, you okay?"

"Are you done eating?" the raven asked, glancing at the food laid out on trays on the floor. Takeshi nodded. "Yeah. I was only finishing Colonello's tofu." Hibari looked over at the blonde. "I need to talk with him for a bit."

Colonello wiped his mouth and gave Hibari a funny look. "Sure. Take your time."

Hibari turned around and Takeshi followed him out of the boiler room. They didn't talk as they walked over to the elevators. They took the lift up, walked out of the bathhouse just as the frogmen were sweeping up and putting out the lamps, across the bridge, and, to Takeshi's surprise, through the gap inbetween the bushes and into the secret garden he'd visited with Tsuna once.

Hibari reached into his jacket again and retrieved a small paper bag. He poured some seeds out into his palm, and several birds came twittering over to nibble at the grains in his palm.

"Here," the raven said suddenly, holding out the bag to Takeshi. "Feed them too."

Though he was confused, Takeshi complied, spilling a handful of seeds into his hand and holding it out. Two more birds flew over and perched lightly on his fingers, pecking at the food. There were sparrows and robins, a hummingbird and even a larger crow who ate up the seeds on the ground, but Takeshi's eyes were drawn to a small, brown feathered bird standing on his thumb and feeding in his hand.

"Hibari, what's this type of bird called?" It's really pretty."

"Huh? Oh, the bird?"

"_The birds? They're called sky—"_

"Skyla—"

"Skylarks." Takeshi said suddenly, stunned. Hibari raised an eyebrow and said slowly, "Yes…they're skylarks. Why did you ask me if you already knew?"

"I-I didn't." Takeshi stammered. "I…I just…remembered."

Hibari gave him a funny look. Takeshi's mind reeled slightly, thrown back into the memory that he'd first thought of again in a long time when he'd cast the water bubble around the Sins.

"_I love the water, it's so nice and cool and it's great to play in during a hot summer day! What about you? What do you like?"_

"_I like…birds. And this river. It's very clean."_

"_Birds are cool! I'm glad you like this river, you should come by more often. By the way, what's that type of bird on your shoulder called? It's really pretty."_

"_Huh? Oh, the birds? They're skylarks."_

He'd missed the ending of the memory because the water had been fading away from him, but when he'd looked at Hibari, the name of the bird came back to him again. Like it had been there all that time. A hand touched his forearm and he jolted back a little, surprised to see that it was Hibari who had his hand on his arm.

"Eh? Hibari, what—"

"You have a burn." The raven stated matter-of-factly, staring down at Takeshi's arm. The baseball player blinked, and then laughed a little, scratching the back of his head. "Oh yeah, I bumped against the boiler by accident. It doesn't hurt so much anymore."

Hibari 'tsked' quietly and placed his hand over the blistering skin again. His touch was cool to the skin, soothing and painless. The raven applied a bit of pressure before drawing back his hand, revealing smooth, unmarked skin. Takeshi's jaw dropped. There wasn't even a scar there to show where the burn had been.

"How…? How did you…?"

"I don't just bite herbivores to death all the time, you know." Hibari said with a hint of amusement. "I'm perfectly capable of healing them too."

"Ahh…thanks." Takeshi said sheepishly, rubbing his arm. He stopped when he felt Hibari's fingers intertwine with his own, the raven's small hand sliding into his palm. Hibari's hand fit perfectly with his, like a jigsaw puzzle. His heart hammered in his ribcage as Hibari took a step closer, eyes glowing in the golden light cast by the rising sun.

"Your shirt smells burnt."

"Huhn? Oh, that happens. I've yet to set a fire to anything, thank goodness."

"If you damage the bathhouse property I'll have to bite you to death."

Takeshi found himself smirking as he replied. "I don't think I'll mind," he said with a mischievous grin.

Hibari arched a delicate eyebrow. "We'll see about that," he said, and he leaned up and pressed his lips against Takeshi's once again. The baseball player's stomach had suddenly decided that it was going to be an Olympic gymnast, and was currently doing flips all over the place. He reached out to grasp Hibari's other hand as the raven deepened their kiss, nibbling on Takeshi's lower lip. It was _amazing_.

"Aw, what an adorable couple!"

Hibari accidentally bit down on Takeshi's lip in shock before spinning around, whipping out his tonfas and spinning around to the offender, who happened to be standing a few feet away. The raven lashed out violently, but instead of his tonfa making contact with the a body, there was a loud 'clang' of metal against metal as the tonfa hit head-on with a long trident.

It was Mukuro.

Takeshi felt his throat constrict at the sight of the blue-haired man. Without thinking, he reached out and grabbed Hibari by the elbow, pulling him backwards so that the raven fell against his chest with a surprised "mrrf?". Takeshi took a step in front of him, cold sweat on his palms and his heart hammering in his chest, but he stood his ground and glared right into Mukuro's mismatched eyes. The taller spirit smiled serenely, but it was cold and dangerous.

"What are you doing here?" Takeshi asked, frowning. Hibari made a noise and tried to push around Takeshi, glaring daggers at the blue-haired man. "You _know_ this herbivore? Let me bite him to death for holding a weapon and trespassing!"

"Kufufufu, how ridiculous. I'm a worker at the bathhouse, you know. I'm working as an Overseer Trainee. My name is Mukuro, nice to meet you."

"I'll kill you!"

"Hibari!" Takeshi said sharply, grabbing Hibari's arm to keep him from launching himself at Mukuro. The other laughed again, rolling his trident lightly in his palm. "So you're Hibari. I've heard so much about you. I hope we'll get along well, yes?"

"What on earth as you saying, herbivore?" Hibari snarled. "Like I would ever let you crowd me."

Mukuro's eye glinted dangerously. "Shall we test that out?" he asked, and his trident came flashing forwards. Hibari lifted his tonfa in an instant do defend against the attack, and Takeshi's heart leapt. He didn't want Hibari to fight. He leapt between them.

"Stop!" he yelled, and the stone fountain exploded.

Water drenched everything. The clear liquid flew in a high arc through the air and splashed all over the garden. Hibari spluttered in shock as he was soaked from head to toe, but Mukuro got blasted right off his feet and landed on the ground several feet away. Takeshi stood, panting heavily, water running down his face and dripping from his hair. Mukuro sat up, spitting a stream of liquid out of his mouth. His eyes were burning with hatred, but Takeshi set his jaw in a straight line and clenched his fists. It was just like his father said, he was damn stubborn and determined when he wanted to be. And right now, he didn't want this dangerous guy anywhere near Hibari.

"Well done, Takeshi." Mukuro said, getting to his feet and wringing water out of his shirt. "Well done indeed." He turned on his heel and left the garden, trident in hand, his ponytail, stringy from the water, sticking to his back in a shapeless mess.

Takeshi watched him go, part of him wanting to strike Mukuro down but the other half of him telling him that he should let this fight go before somebody really got hurt. A hand tugged at his sleeve, and he turned to see Hibari standing behind him. The raven's bangs clung to his face, and water trickled down his chin. The sun had fully risen and it illuminated his eyes beautifully. Takeshi reached out his hand to hold Hibari's face. The raven leaned in into his touch, eyelashes fluttering a little against Takeshi's wet palm.

"He'll come back, you know."

"I'll figure something out."

"You humans are always like that. You take things on before you really think anything through."

"Well, I can't help it, can I? I just don't want him…near you."

Hibari scoffed, pushing Takeshi's hand away. "I can hold my own fight. I don't need your help," he said, but Takeshi threw his arms around Hibari and hugged him tight. "I know I'm just human, but please…I like you. And I don't want anything to happen to you here."

Hibari made a noise in his throat, but he didn't move away from the hug. "Baka," he said simply, winding his own arm around Takeshi's back.

* * *

><p>The earth by the old trench was black and smelled painfully of tar. A young woman walked along the shore of what used to be a river, keeping right along the line where the river's edge once was. She was young, in her mid-twenties, with cropped black hair and a low ponytail the fell along her back. She wore a plain white dress and soft sandals. On her head was a strange muffin-like hat, and under her left eye was a light orange tattoo of a circular, five petal flower.<p>

She came to a stop along a certain point in the river and leaned down to pick something up from the ground. It was a small stone that fit in the palm of her hand, and flashed different colours in the light. With a sigh, she pocketed the little rock and straightened up again, staring at the setting sun in the horizon.

"Yamamoto Takeshi…what will you do now?"

* * *

><p>Okay. Chapter Six- done ^^" I think I floated around a bit too much this chapter but I really wanted to try and focus on Hibari and Takeshi a little bit more. Mukuro showed a bit of a dark side too, yay~ I didn't want to make it too sappy, but a little bit of romance here and there is a good thing :D The action begins in Chapter Seven, hooray! Since Mukuro is an evil No Face, chaos ensures, wheee. The lady in last bit of the story also represents somebody in the movie, guess who :D<p>

Thank you for reading! Reviews are always appreciated.

-BlackStar


	7. Chapter 7

One Summer's Day

Hello everyone ~(^_^~) It's Chapter Seven, yay! I hope I'll be able to finish this within three more chapters, just so it doesn't drag out. If not…well, kekekeke, I'll just go overboard again, kora :'D In this chapter: Attacks left right and center. Mukuro acts pineapply. Byakuran eats his marshmallows. Hibari rages. Takeshi comes into terms with himself (sort of). Huge plot twist! Anyway.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Chapter Seven<p>

Since facing off with Mukuro, Takeshi had been keeping his own safety in check. He looked around the corners and glanced behind him whenever his intuition prickled. He stuck around Colonello more often and didn't leave the boiler room much anymore, not even onto the roof for a breath of fresh air. When he slept, he'd blink awake several times just to see if everything was okay. One might state that he was paranoid (Hibari certainly did when he came down to see him) but Takeshi wasn't taking any chances. Not only did he know how dangerous Mukuro was, he had a mission for himself to find his own name again and escape from the bathhouse. Byakuran would be beyond stupid if he really thought Takeshi would quietly accept his fate and remain a slave forever.

At other times, when he wasn't glancing over his shoulder for the pineapple head (Hibari came up with the name) Takeshi kept experimenting with his so-called "powers". He'd only made water explode when he had been upset or angry, which was an extreme emotion. What could he accomplish when he was calm? The results had been (surprisingly) outstanding. He learned that when trying to control the water, he had to tune out of his own overcrowded thoughts and simply place all of his focus into what he wanted the water to _do_. And the water had responded, as though it had become an external part of Takeshi's mind, making little fountains spewing out of the kettle or forming shapes in mid-air. His favourite creation so far were the mini water bubbles that floated like Christmas ornaments hanging on non-existent string in the air, hovering and reflecting the light of the fire to create patterns of light all over the boiler room.

"If you'd bothered to learn how to control the water before, I wouldn't have gotten soaked that day," Hibari complained, leaning into Takeshi's side as they sat together on one of the rare occasions Takeshi ventured onto the roof for a break. Takeshi gave a little laugh and pulled Hibari closer, his arm wrapped around the other's shoulders. Colonello had long since resigned to the fact that the raven and the baseball player were 'together', in some sense, and was carefully avoiding them whenever they were like this. Takeshi wasn't worried though. He knew that Colonello just wanted to give them privacy. The blonde wasn't complaining about them being together at all, since Hibari had stopped calling him a herbivore now that he was with Takeshi.

"Well, I'm still trying to figure out how I can do this. I've never tried and I don't think it's entirely normal for a human to be able to control water."

Hibari snorted. "I told you you're part spirit somewhere. You're not completely human, that's for sure."

"Is that why you put up with me?" Takeshi joked. Hibari shifted in Takeshi's hold so that he was facing the teen, onyx eyes looking directly into Takeshi's dark ones to show that he was serious. "I'm here with you because you're _worth_ it, Takeshi, not because I've concluded you're not fully human. Do I seem that shallow to you? You're not a pushover. Nor do you look like a fruit, while we're on the topic—" Takeshi choked with laugher, "—and don't you get that feeling? I've met you somewhere before. I know you already, in my memories. That's why I'm here. That's why I _trust_ you."

Takeshi sat for a moment and thought about Hibari's words. When he thought about it, he felt like he knew Hibari too. He had no solid memories of the raven, but in the back of his mind, he felt at home with him. And then there were those wings on Hibari's back that nobody but him could really see…

The ventilation hatch opened next to them and Colonello popped his head out. "Sorry to interrupt, but Takeshi, I need help shutting of the main vent, kora."

"Ah, okay, hang on." Takeshi replied, sitting up. Hibari got to his feet as well, dusting off his pants. "It's almost sunrise. I'm going now," the raven said.

"See you," Takeshi said, giving him a quick hug. Hibari 'hmmed' and walked across the roof to leave by the ladder on the side of the building like he did last time. He climbed back through the hatch to help Colonello with the boiler. Another day had come to a finish in the Spirit World, but the pain of missing home was still buried deep in Takeshi's heart.

Two days had passed, and there had been no word on Mukuro. Takeshi, however, still refused to let his guard down. He'd heard from Reborn that the pineapple had been working individually with Byakuran now, and the Overseer himself hadn't had much time to keep an eye out for him.

"But I'll let you know if anything else crops up." Reborn promised, adjusting his fedora. Takeshi nodded. "Thanks, Reborn. How's Hibari?"

"Still biting herbivores," Reborn smirked, "but not so much anymore since he got together with you." Takeshi felt his cheeks colour a little. "Good to know," he said, sweatdropping a little. Colonello, who'd been sitting in the worn-out spinny chair next to the control panel, stood up and said, "How's Lal, Reborn?"

The dark-haired man raised an eyebrow. Colonello looked back with steely calm and said, "Don't worry, I already told the kid everything." The eyebrow went even higher. "He told you about Lal and Byakuran, kid?" Reborn asked Takeshi. Nervous, the teen nodded.

Reborn sighed a little and looked back to the blonde. "What do you think, Colonello?" Colonello closed his eyes and exhaled heavily. Reborn pulled his fedora down over his eyes and nodded at Takeshi's direction with a tired expression on his face. "Good day, you two." And then he was gone, climbing through the little door and sliding it shut after him.

It finally occurred to Takeshi that Colonello had been keeping out of him and Hibari's way not only out of courtesy, but simply to the fact that he couldn't stand seeing them together and having to think back to the way he and Lal once was. Sadness and shame washed over him, but when he turned to Colonello, the blonde was already climbing up the ladder to the ventilation hatch, cigarette smoke trailing after him.

It was the middle of the day when Takeshi felt somebody shaking him awake.

"Huh? Wassisit?" he muttered, confused and disoriented. The shape above him was mass blur of blue and brown, but when he blinked, it was Tsuna who came into focus.

"Takeshi! Colonello! Get up! Now! This is an emergency!"

"What?" Takeshi asked, jerking into a sitting position. Behind Tsuna, Colonello had rolled over, his hair disheveled and looking completely bemused.

"Aren't you Reborn's helper, kora? What's going on?" the blonde asked, squinting at Tsuna. The brunette nodded frantically and hissed, "You have to get out of here now. Reborn sent me here to warn you!"

"What happened?" Takeshi asked, wide awake now. "Tsuna, what's going on?"

"No time!" the younger teen wailed, wringing his hands. "It's Byakuran and Mukuro! You're got to get out before they get you! Reborn and Lal were both attacked!"

"WHAT?" Colonello snarled, grabbing Tsuna's shoulder. "What did he do to Lal? Where are those bastards?"

"He's coming for you two! Reborn sent me to find you because he can't right now! Mukuro will be here any minute, and he's got this terrifying power. You have to run!"

"Assuming, of course, you have time to do so." A voice said from next to Tsuna, and Mukuro appeared out of nowhere. In one swift moment, he kicked Colonello away and grabbed the brunette by the back of his yukata. Takeshi yelled and grabbed for his friend, but Mukuro took a leap backwards and dragged Tsuna with him. The trident appeared and three sharp points were aimed at Tsuna's throat.

"Move and he dies." Mukuro said lightly, eyes glowing maliciously. Takeshi froze, breathing heavily and clenched his fists. Colonello got to his feet, shaking with anger. "Coward," he snarled. Mukuro smiled. "A smart coward then, perhaps. You wouldn't risk his life, would you, Colonello? Or you, Takeshi?"

"Stop it." Takeshi said heatedly. "Put him down or I'll kill you, Mukuro!"

"I'm afraid that can't happen either, Takeshi-kun," another all-too familiar voice said cheerfully from the sliding door. Four heads turned in the direction, and Takeshi felt his stomach drop.

It was Byakuran. He was dragging Hibari with him, a small knife held against the raven's neck. Colonello and Takeshi both roared with rage.

"You _fucking_ bastard, Byakuran!" Colonello thundered.

"Don't touch him!" Takeshi yelled, wanting to rip Byakuran into a thousand pieces. Hibari coughed a little, spitting blood onto the white-haired man's arm. He had cuts on his face and arms and his left leg was limp and dragging uselessly at an awkward angle, but his eyes burned with hatred. Takeshi's heart beat painfully in his ribcage at the raven's injured form.

Byakuran smiled dangerously. "I've got my helpers looking after Reborn and Lal, Colonello. So unless you want to say some early goodbyes, I suggest you don't push your luck any further."

"How dare you," Colonello said, his voice shaking. "Haven't you done enough damage already?"

"Which is exactly why I need more power to fix all the current problems I've run into." Byakuran said matter-of-factly. "Of course, power doesn't just appear to you. I've invested a lot of time and patience to this particular plan, if you must know, so I'll appreciate it if you don't mess anything up, Colonello. Or you, Takeshi-kun. As a matter of fact, you happen to be the one who caused the most trouble."

"What are you saying?" Takeshi said angrily. Byakuran sighed dramatically and said, "Well, at this rate we'll never get anything done. I'll do you all a favour and give you a history lesson. To be short and simple, I want Hibari's power. That's all."

"What?" Takeshi asked, flabbergasted. "You can't just take from others!"

"Of course not. It's a long process of transferring the energy of one being into another, not to mention dangerous. That's why this plan took suck a long time, because I had to work out the kinks to ensure I get the optimal results. As a matter of fact, it took me ten years."

"Ten years," Colonello said suddenly, his voice sounding strangled. Byakuran looked at him.

"Yes, Colonello, ten years. And if I recall, that's the amount of time you've been working in the boiler room, right? A good choice of mine too. You had been getting in my way, nothing I'd ever expect of my son. Eliminating you was the first factor. Acquiring Hibari was the second."

The demon boss' purple eyes gleamed in amusement. "Tell me, Takeshi, what do you see on Hibari's back from time to time?"

Colonello and Tsuna looked at him. Takeshi couldn't breathe. "You damn—"

"_Wings_," Byakuran said lightly. "Am I right, Takeshi? There are wings on Hibari's back. And of course, only you could actually see them, apart from me, since only the two of us know who Hibari really is. Not even he knows himself, because he can't even remember his own name, right, Hibari-kun?"

Hibari was shaking, but he glared defiantly at the white-haired man. Byakuran laughed. "Hibari is a skylark spirit. A free bird. He can fly anywhere he wants, unbound by the elements of the earth to keep him grounded. There is only skylark in the whole of the Spirit World, and his power, all that raw, elegant power, is the one of a kind. And it's exactly what I need. So how to you capture something that can fly away on a whim?"

"No," Tsuna said suddenly, a horrified expression on his face. Hibari's eyes snapped to him, burning silently. Tsuna blinked tears and screamed, "Byakuran, you're a devil!"

"Oh, Reborn's worker's got it," Byakuran said smoothly. "Smart boy. Enlighten my idiot of a son and this worker here, will you?"

Tsuna shook his head, crying silently, but Hibari suddenly spoke. "You took my wings. You fucking demon stole my wings away from me."

"Oh, wonderful, you remember now, don't you?" Byakuran said pleasantly. "Indeed. Humans clip their pet bird's wings to ensure they'll never leave their cage, right? However, the process with a spirit is much more complicated. One does not simply walk up and perform surgery on a skylark's wings, you know. So I had to resort to other methods. With the knowledge granted to me by a vast network of information, I discovered Hibari's favourite resting place.

"A river. A long, winding river that eventually merged into the big wide sea. I must say, when I first say this river, I was also impressed by its purity. That was probably the reason why Hibari went there in the first place, right, Hiba-chan? In any case, it was the perfect set up to trap the wandering skylark. The humans had a workplace set out in the middle of the sea, and it happened to be very close to the river this skylark liked. You can probably guess what type of work the humans were doing there, right?"

"An oil platform." Takeshi interjected. He felt sick at how Byakuran was telling this like a weather forecaster would broadcasting the temperature and the chance of rain.

"Indeed. Well, humans are very simple, aren't they? Their tools aren't very hard to mess with. A bit of tinkering here and there, and the ocean was washed over in oil. Eventually, it reached the river too. And birds, no matter how free they are, won't be able to fly anymore if their wings are drenched in tar, correct? Hibari-chan wasn't an exception."

Takeshi wanted to kill Byakuran. Tsuna was crying quietly and Colonello had his hands balled up into fists. None of them could move because of their captors and their friend's lives at stake. It was a horrible feeling.

"So I suppose this is where I really came in to the story. Hibari, a lost little bird who can't fly, needed guidance. So, I offered mine. Unaware of my role in this tale, he agreed to come work at the bathhouse. Things have been working quite tell for me for many years until my big mistake came back to bite me from behind." Byakuran turned his purple eyes on Takeshi. "You, Takeshi-kun, appeared out of nowhere and managed to overturn everything I planned for ten years in less than two weeks."

"How?" Takeshi asked, confused.

Byakuran glowered at him. "Because _you're_ the spirit of the river I destroyed, Takeshi-kun."

A ringing silence fell over the room. Colonello's eyes widened and Tsuna gasped. Hibari's eyebrows shot up and his face paled as realization washed over him. Mukuro coughed and said, "What a dramatic turn of events indeed."

Byakuran snorted. "What an understatement. That was the one fatal flaw in my perfect plan. I failed to realize that there was a spirit residing in the river that I destroyed with the oil spill I manipulated the humans into creating. I'd planned to direct Hibari's hatred at the useless non-spirit population so he wouldn't ever suspect me. When I ruined the river, Takeshi-kun was also left without a home. Lost, he turned to the humans and found himself a place to live in the Human Realm, and successfully managed to hide from me for the past ten years. Until he appeared before me now, when he wandered into the Spirit World by accident. I felt a hunch about him, and when I made you deal with the Seven Sins, Takeshi-kun, you confirmed my suspicions. You're a powerful river spirit. Hibari never once thought of you as a human being and managed to rekindle his own memories of you. You are the biggest threat to my plan because you helped Hibari _remember_."

"You're insane," Tsuna said faintly. "Perhaps," Byakuran shot back, "But what would you know? You're only a human, little Tsuna-kun. The world of the spirits has always been beyond your kind."

"You're right, Byakuran," Takeshi said, his voice shaking. "And the world of the humans has always been beyond you. I've spent nineteen years of my life now living as one of them, and now I realized that because they're weak and they're not as powerful as spirits, they've come to understand that power is something to be respected, unlike you, who grew greedy and only ever wanted more. You imprisoned your son and his friends. You stole Hibari's wings, took away my home, and stranded Tsuna here. You took our names. If you haven't learned already, your mistakes will come back to bite you from behind. You're the one who'll lose everything in the end, Byakuran!"

"Brave words," Byakuran said, amused, "But what exactly are you going to do about it, Takeshi?"

"He's not going to do anything," Colonello said suddenly, "because _I_ will." He snapped his fingers, and the drawers of salts and herbs behind Mukuro exploded. Grassy material and chunks unground salt rained down upon them. Colonello darted forwards and wrenched Byakuran away from Hibari, who collapsed to the floor without the white-haired man holding him up. Takeshi bolted for Mukuro first, knocking the trident away from the pineapple's hands and Tsuna scrambled out of the way.

"Tsuna! Go find Reborn and Lal!" Takeshi bellowed. The brunette nodded frantically and yelled back, "Be careful!" before crawling through the mess and disappeared through the sliding door.

Mukuro spat out a mouthful of herbs and retrieved his weapon. "I'll find him afterwards." He spat. "I'll kill you first. That was my orders from Byakuran in the beginning place anyway."

"You fucking wish," Takeshi snarled, and he tackled Mukuro. The two of them rolled all over the place, trying to fight while dodging the battle between Colonello and Byakuran. Takeshi had never seen the blonde use magic before, but now that he thought about it, he realized that Colonello was a spirit as well. Byakuran glowed with a hazy purple light around him and Colonello blazed with a golden aura. He matched his father's blows and strikes with his own attacks, the force of the two spirits clashing shattering things around them as they fought.

For Takeshi, there was a problem now. There wasn't any water in the boiler room. He dodged and wove between the sweeping motions of Mukuro's trident, trying to find a way to defeat the demon. His sword training and baseball reflexes saved him from many fatal blows, but he couldn't keep up for long. Mukuro cornered him, but Takeshi rolled under the coal dispensing chute and the trident cleaved off the flap that kept the chunks of rock from spilling out, which was exactly what happened once the hatch broke open. The blue-haired man yelled in shock as he leapt aside to keep his feet from getting buried in the powdery chunks. His eyes narrowed and the red pupil glowed. Takeshi barely had time to remember Tsuna's warning from before when he was attacked again.

"…_Mukuro will be here any minute, and he's got this terrifying power. You have to run!"_

Damn.

Mukuro dissolved into mist and reformed behind Takeshi almost instantly. The teen threw his hands up to guard his face, and the trident cut right into his arms. The force of the attack sent him flying backwards against the boiler. Takeshi yelled in pain as his back made contact with the hot metal.

"Takeshi!"

It was Hibari who'd screamed that, and Mukuro turned in time to block the tonfa that came flying his way. Hibari dragged himself upright and threw himself across the room at the pineapple. Mukuro caught on fast, fighting the raven as he wobbled on one working leg and the weakened other. Takeshi coughed and blinked tears of pain out of his eyes. In the midst of the dust and colours flashing in the room, he caught sight of something small and shiny a little ways on the ground in front of him.

It was the silver bullet.

Xanxus' words rung in his ears from far away. _"I'm the Sin of Wrath, boy. Fire and anger is my domain. If you ever need any help you don't want to dirty your hands on…I'll figure something out for you."_

Takeshi gritted his teeth. "Fire and anger are the only two things in this damned room anyway!" With that, he reached out and grabbed the bullet. It was cool and heavy in his fingers. _'Please,' _he thought, _'just this once. Help my friends out,'_ and he threw the bullet into the flames through the broken hatch of the boiler.

There was a popping noise like a firecracker, and suddenly, black steam hissed from the hatch. "What?" Mukuro said, confused. Colonello stared, wiping blood off his face from a cut above his eyebrow. Hibari's eyes narrowed and then he glanced over to Takeshi. Byakuran froze. "You brat—"

"VOIIIIIIIIIIIII!"

For the second time that day, something in the boiler room exploded. This time, it was the boiler itself. The front blew up into thousand pieces of hot metal that rained down upon them. Takeshi dove for Hibari and pulled him out of harm's way, shielding the raven from most of the hot debris falling over them. Byakuran and Mukuro yelled with pain as they were hit by the metal, but none fell upon Colonello. Taking advantage of Byakuran's distraction, the blonde punched him and sent him flying into the broken drawers, where Byakuran landed with a thud.

"Thank you, _father_, for putting me here," Colonello snarled. "I've worked with that machine for so long we've literally become one. It won't hurt me."

"Ushiushiushi, what is this disgusting place? It looks like a peasant's den!"

"Now, now, Bel dear, don't be rude, it's not some people's fault they're poor."

"Whatever, Lussuria. All I'm saying is that I'm not paying for the damages made."

"Boss? Where are you? Boss!"

"VOI! YOU STEPPED ON MY FOOT, LEVITHAN!"

"Shut the hell up, trash. We've got work."

The smoke parted, and the Sin of Wrath, Xanxus, walked forward, red eyes glowing like the devil in the dark, mildly observing the wreckage until he spotted Takeshi on the ground. The teen gaped at the Seven Sins as they came into view. Obnoxiously loud Squalo. Creepy Levithan. Self-proclaimed prince Belphagor. The tiny Mammon. The strange machine man in the back. Giggly Lussuria. The last time they'd come to the bathhouse, Takeshi had almost drowned them in a water bubble, but right now, he couldn't be more relieved to see them.

"Xanxus…I…please—"

"A promise is a promise," Xanxus interrupted, raising an eyebrow down at him, "Or did you think so lowly of me that I wouldn't help out the one time you asked?"

"I—thank you." Takeshi replied weakly. Xanxus grunted, sweeping over Mukuro and Byakuran, and then Colonello. He smirked and said to the other Sins, "Spare the blonde. We've no business with him. Kill the rest."

Byakuran's eyes narrowed. "You wish, Wrath."

The floor of the boiler room rumbled and a crack broke through the concrete. Takeshi pulled Hibari to his feet and pulled him away from the fissure in the ground. There was an unearthly presence coming from the darkness. Mukuro's mist faded in an out of shapes around him, forming a dozen of ghosts. Xanxus looked bored.

"Go."

Squalo unleashed a mad cackle of laughter as a giant, one-eyed demon crawled through the crack on beneath them and roared. Lussuria and Levithan shot towards Mukuro, battling through his ghosts. Squalo, Belphagor and Mammon tackled the demon head-on, and Xanxus reached behind him to retrieve two giant, X-marked guns. He raised it lazily at Byakuran, and fired.

Looking back on his actions, Takeshi decided that calling the Sins for help had definatly damaged the boiler room beyond repair, but he didn't have time to think over it right now. He helped Hibari to his feet and they ran through the mess of spirits, ghosts and demons over to Colonello.

"How the hell did you get them to come?" Colonello asked in confusion as they ducked under the control panel to take cover from flying debris. Takeshi quickly explained how Xanxus gave him the silver bullet before the Sins had left the bathhouse. Colonello shook his head, but he was smiling.

"I told you your water was good stuff, kora. You saved us this time. Byakuran is strong, but the Sins are equal to him in power. And there are seven of them. We should go find that Tsuna kid, Reborn and Lal."

Takeshi nodded. He leaned around to look for Xanxus. The Sin was battling Byakuran near the back of the room, firing round after round while the white-haired man dodged and sliced through them with purple flames. "Xanxus!" he yelled. "We have to go help our friends!"

The Sin looked over his shoulder. "Go on. We're perfectly fine here." There was a bizarre screech from the demon Byakuran summoned as Squalo plunged a long sword through its eye. Xanxus spared his fellow Sins a disinterested glance. "Fine indeed."

Takeshi nodded quickly. "Thank you!" he yelled again, and Colonello moved quickly over to yank the sliding door open. Hibari followed, and Takeshi pulled the door shut after him. The three of them ran along the hallway as the entire building shook with the force of the battle behind them. Hibari limped badly, but for the most part, he managed to keep up. Takeshi would have offered to carry him, but he knew that Hibari's pride had already taken enough damage with Byakuran's story. He only took the raven's hand, giving him a reassuring squeeze and was relieved to feel the pressure returned.

They rode the elevator up. Colonello took a quick look at Hibari's leg. "It's only a sprain," he said. "Nothing dangerous." Hibari huffed and glared at the wall.

"That pineapple bastard caught me. I'll bite him to death if it's the last thing I do."

"Byakuran said that Reborn and Lal are being watched by his helpers. What if Tsuna got caught too?" Takeshi asked. Colonello shrugged. "I don't give a shit. I'm running in and ripping every last spirit apart if they've even _touched_ them."

And that was Colonello's pride, Takeshi realized, that had been damaged when Byakuran harmed his friends. When his own father turned on him and ruined his life. When he was helpless and couldn't do anything to save the woman he loved. Takeshi took a deep breath. Byakuran destroyed _his_ home and hurt Hibari, but he wasn't going to fight because it was his pride to defend who he cared about. It was because he _couldn't_ lose the people he cared for.

"I'm with you." Hibari said, looking at Colonello. "I'm done with this place and that freak."

Colonello grinned widely. "To think I would one day team up with the disciplinary demon." He stuck out his hand. "Truce."

Hibari reached out and shook Colonello's calloused hand. His other hand was holding Takeshi's tightly. "We'll get Lal out, Colonello." Takeshi said. "I promise."

Colonello smiled. "I know. I believe you." The lift rumbled and came to a shuddering halt to the main floor. There were dozens of frogmen armed with small spears standing around the lift. When the caught sight of the elevator, they peered in only to back up with gasps and_ ribbit_'_s_ when they saw Takeshi, Hibari, and Colonello. Hibari glared and whipped out his tonfas. Colonello pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and lit it up with a flicker of a flame on his index finger. He winked at Takeshi. _We've literally become one_. Byakuran really had given Colonello his new power through ten years of imprisonment with nobody to befriend but a cranky old boiler. That was the best example of the phrase 'You make your own enemies' Takeshi had ever heard of. He closed his eyes and felt the tug in his gut. The waters in the baths rumbled. The frogmen gulped, clutching their spears. It was a done battle.

"Go!" Colonello roared, and Byakuran's helpers scattered with screams of terror as waves, flames, Hibari, Takeshi and Colonello came soaring down upon them. The entire bathhouse shook with the force of the powerful battles as two enemies fought against one another, one fighting in the name of their pride and the other struggling through because they could not give theirs up.

* * *

><p>Done! I hope this chapter wasn't too complicated. It's got the past in it, which I often find difficult to fully explain sometimes. Hopefully you guys get the gist of it ^^" The theme of the ending in this chapter was Pride. I got the idea from chapter 322 in the manga. Hibari's lines really made me think about the meaning behind the word. He said, and I quote, "It is not because it is my pride that I will not give it up. It is because I <em>cannot<em> give it up. That is what my pride is."

Very deep. One of the reasons why Hibari is my favourite characters ever. Anyway. Chapter Eight will bring back the lady from Chapter Six and finish off the battle. I'll warn you ahead of time, I'm thinking of killing somebody in the story, but I'm not sure if I want to go through with that idea. It seems too cruel. Well. Too much has been given away. Time to stop talking :'3

Thank you for reading! Reviews are much appreciated, and depending on your opinion, I may or may not use the character death idea. Joke! Joke…but who knows, kufufufu.

-BlackStar


	8. Chapter 8

One Summer's Day

Chapter Eight guys~ Yayy :D I'm exhausted right now. Lately that's all I've been feeling. SO. In this chapter, we continue the battle between Takeshi, Hibari, Colonello, Reborn, Tsuna and Lal against Marshmallow Face and Pineapple-kun ^^" I promised the appearance of the lady from the previous chapters, which is really Luce :D I got answers like Uni and Aria, which technically aren't wrong, but I love Luce best, so she's the one in this story :3

Also: This chapter is dedicated to my friend Jassy. HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU BOOGER FACE! Ahem. Anyway.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

* * *

><p>Chapter Eight<p>

Takeshi had never been in a fight his whole life. There was this one time as a child when a bully in his class had been picking on one of his friends, and he'd punched to boy so hard his nose broke and two of his teeth were knocked out. He'd gotten a severe reprimanding from his teacher, his principal, _and_ his father, so Takeshi had never raised a hand against anyone again. When he got older, he had to deal with frustration carefully because he'd learned that his strength was monstrous. He picked up the art of wielding a sword to carefully train his mind. But save for that one childish impulse, he'd never acted solely on his temper.

Until now.

Frogmen were yelling and screaming as they were washed away by the tidal waves Takeshi had summoned from the bathtubs. He didn't want to really hurt anybody, so he simply sent the frogs into spinning whirlpools that left them in a dizzy mess on the floor. Neither Hibari nor Colonello were so merciful though. The raven smashed his way through spears and pitchforks (god knows where the frogmen got those things—this place was a _bathhouse_, not a farm) with his tonfas. Colonello fought off the amphibians with sparks of flames that burst to life in a shower of orange and red sparks, setting the frog's clothes on fire and sending them running off in terror. The blonde reached out and grabbed one of the frogs before he could dash off.

"Where the hell is Lal? And Reborn and the kid?"

"I-I don't know sir!" the frog cried out piteously, waving his webbed feet around. Hibari appeared next to Colonello with an annoyed expression and suddenly pressed his tonfa against the frog's neck.

"Speak now or I promise you you'll never talk again," the raven threatened.

The frog gulped. "The third room on the left," he whispered, hanging his head. Colonello huffed and threw the frog away from him. The amphibian wailed as he went flying into the group of retreating crowd.

"C'mon, let's go," Colonello said urgently. The three of them dashed down the hallway. There were no more frogmen hanging around the area anymore. The combination of the cranky old boiler man, the disciplinary demon and their boss' worst enemy was clearly too much for them to handle. Colonello reached the room first and he wrenched the door open.

Reborn, Lal and Tsuna were tied up together in the middle of the room. They were struggling through the ropes, trying to get them off their arms and ankles. They all looked up when the three came bursting into the room.

"Colonello!" Lal cried out in surprise.

"Fuck!" Reborn yelled in relief, closing his eyes for a brief moment, a smile twitching in the corner of his lip.

"You're okay!" Tsuna yelped. "What happened downstairs?"

"No time to explain right now," Takeshi said urgently, reaching out to help untie the binds around his friends. "We should get out before Byakuran and Mukuro catch up." Within moments the ropes were off and the three workers stood up. To everybody's surprise, Lal suddenly launched herself at Colonello, hugging the blonde close and buried her face into his shirt. Colonello blinked in surprise, but the startled expression on his face quickly passed over as he hugged her back tightly, running a large hand through Lal's long hair and patting her back comfortingly.

Takeshi couldn't help but smile. The blonde looked more at peace than the teen had ever seen him. Not wanting to intrude on their little moment, he and Hibari peeked carefully around the corner of the doorway. The bathhouse shook occasionally, but there was no sign of the Sins or their enemies.

"We should move out now." Reborn said, peering over their heads. Hibari nodded. "Let's go."

The group of six quickly made their way across the chaotic mess they'd created in the bathhouse moments ago and ran all the way to the exit. They were several feet from the door when it happened: the floor shuddered and buckled. Tsuna turned with a gasp and yelled, "Look out!"

The entire base bathing area was groaning loudly as the wood splintered and snapped. Something was trying to force its way out of the basement. Reborn grabbed Tsuna's arm and hollered at the others, "RUN! NOW!"

Nobody needed to be told twice. Takeshi seized Hibari's hand and the two of them staggered over the splitting ground as the entire building shook. It felt like an earthquake. Dust shook from the ceiling and debris began to fall over them. The doorway was barely six feet away. Leaping over the remains of the collapsing floor, all of them tumbled out onto the bridge as the huge, one-eyed demon the Sins had been fighting clawed its way out of the basement and out of the bathhouse, completely destroying one side of the building.

"What is that!" Lal screamed.

"Byakuran's demon!" Colonello yelled back as the thing made a loud, keening noise, like a freight train squealing to a stop. "We have to get further away from here—"

There was a flash of silver, and Colonello's next words came to a shuddering halt.

They all froze. Almost as though they were drawn magnetically, everybody's eyes dropped to look at the blonde's chest, where a dark red splotch was growing around a sleek dagger buried to the hilt just over his heart. Confusion and shock crossed over Colonello's face before he fell to his knees, clutching at the dagger, spitting out blood. Lal screamed.

"Colonello!" The young woman dropped to her knees as well, grabbing the other's shoulders to keep him off the floor. "Colonello! No, please, stay awake!"

Reborn spun around to look up at the roof of the bathhouse. Takeshi followed his gaze and he froze when he saw Byakuran standing on the shingles right over the entrance of the demolished estate. Byakuran had thrown the knife. Byakuran was _smiling_. Rage like he'd never known ripped through him.

"Byakuran!" Takeshi bellowed. "You _fucking demon !_"

The flooded river water running underneath the bridge was by his side in an instant. It washed over Byakuran, but instead of disappearing beneath the waves, the white haired man came flying out to him, a pair of feathery white wings beating from his back. He waved his hand and a milky white sword materialized in his palm, and Takeshi was forced to draw a wall of water around him to throw Byakuran off. He drew back and attacked again. Takeshi gritted his teeth and rolled to one side, drawing Byakuran away from his friends.

"You can't run forever, Takeshi-kun!" Byakuran called out in a sing-song voice. "Be a good boy and let me end this quickly for you!"

"In your dreams!" Takeshi snarled, dodging the sword again. He closed his fists tightly and Byakuran was momentarily thwarted by a jet-like spray of water that knocked in him off balance, but he was back almost immediately and the blade cut so close to Takeshi's face it left a thin red line on his cheek, biting into his skin. Takeshi jumped back, wiping the streak of blood off his face and focused his energy on the monster in front of him. He couldn't forgive Byakuran. Never.

There was a bone-shattering roar as something huge suddenly appeared on the side of the bridge. Takeshi almost froze. The demon Byakuran had summoned had slithered down from the roof of the bathhouse, its glassy eye level to the bridge where Takeshi was standing. In one swift movement, the demon rammed its head into the structure, causing it to shake like a card tower in the wind. Behind him, Lal and Reborn grabbed Colonello and pulled him away from harm's way. Hibari yanked out his tonfas and yelled at the demon, "I'll bite you to death!"

But he never got the chance. A whirl of scattered mist suddenly gathered behind the raven, and he spun around too late. Mukuro materialized out of thin air and slashed his trident across Hibari's chest, tearing through his shirt and staining the ground in red. Hibari choked and clutched at his torso, collapsing on the floor in a heap.

It was as though Takeshi's world had stopped.

In an instant, Mukuro was slammed against the rail of the bridge by a jet of water, sending the trident flying out of his hands and into the valley below. Takeshi bolted across the short distance in a second, punched Mukuro as hard as he could across the face. The blue-haired man let out a shout of pain before slumping down to the ground, passed out. Takeshi immediately reached out to pull Hibari against him.

"Hibari! Hibari, are you okay?"

The raven coughed weakly, eyes fluttering in an attempt to stay awake. Takeshi's heart broke at Hibari's uncharacteristically broken state. He pushed the other's long bangs back away from his forehead with one hand and pressed the other down on the open wound to keep the blood from flowing.

"B…Behind you…"

Takeshi spun around on his knees to see Byakuran's sword inches from his face. He pulled up a stream of water to deflect the blade, but the white-haired man quickly struck again and this time managed to make a deep cut into Takeshi's shoulder. He heard Tsuna yell out for him in fear as Byakuran raised the sword again to make one last hit. Takeshi already knew that his water couldn't save him from the blow at such a close range. He wrapped his arms tightly around Hibari and turned his back to shield the smaller man from the strike.

_It was over._

He felt Hibari's arms tighten around his, and there was a brilliant flash of white light, but to Takeshi's confusion, the sword he expected to feel running through him didn't come as anticipated. Unsure of what was happening, he turned his head a little to the side and blinked.

The light was still there.

He was still alive.

There was a woman standing in front of him.

Byakuran's sword was halted by what appeared to be thick white ribbons winding themselves around the blade and tying it to the rails of the bridge to restrain him from moving. The one-eyed demon was also withering away in the bright light, shredding itself into nothingness while writhing in pain. The woman stood calmly amongst the mess. She had a short apple bob with a long ponytail running down her back. She wore some rather strange clothes that included a long white dress, soft sandals and a strange-looking muffin hat. Her eyes were a soft hazel colour and she had a tattoo of a circular flower under her left eye, but her expression was one of cold dislike and steely defiance. She glared Byakuran down as the white-haired man tossed his wrapped-up sword away with a low growl.

"What the hell are you doing?" he snapped at her.

The woman tilted her chin up and said, "Bringing order back to this place."

Byakuran sneered. "You're a fool. You should have stayed away when you had the chance, _Luce_."

The woman named Luce scowled heavily at him. "You're still the same, Byakuran. I won't forgive you for what you've done. You're beyond redemption. I'm here to put everything you've messed up back into place."

"Shut the hell up!" Byakuran bellowed as he launched himself at her. Takeshi's yell of shock was lost as Luce threw out her hand and in one swift movement, sent out some sort of shockwave the tossed Byakuran back like a rag doll. She then whipped around to face Takeshi and his friends.

"Hold still!" Luce ordered, and the winds began to pick up around them. Takeshi pulled Hibari closer as cyclones whirled around them and white ribbons enveloped everything. The light blinded him once more, and Takeshi felt himself and Hibari fall away into nothingness.

* * *

><p>When he came to, Hibari wasn't with him.<p>

Takeshi opened his eyes and he gasped, taking in air to what felt like deflated lungs. He sat up quickly and almost fell back down, groaning when head rush overtook his brain.

"Be careful, Takeshi-kun. You fell quite hard."

Takeshi turned his head in surprise. Sitting a little ways to his left was the woman in the white dress. She smiled gently at him. "Are you alright?" she asked.

"…Fine." Takeshi said slowly, sitting up properly this time. He glanced around him, only to find a vast stretch of white all around him. Little puffs of clouds floated here and there, but for as far as he could see, he was in the middle of nowhere.

"Where…am I?" Takeshi asked, reaching out to pass a hand through the cloud that drifted idly by. The lady raised a hand and gestured around.

"This is simply unconstructed space that lingers in our universe. One can travel in and out if they know where to go."

"I…where's Hibari?" he asked again, worried. The raven had been injured quite badly. He would never forgive himself if something happened to the skylark. The woman smiled kindly at him.

"Hibari-kun is also alright. He and your friends are residing in the dream space I've opened up for them, but they won't be able to remember this. I only came here to talk to you."

Takeshi paused. "Who are you, then?" he asked her. The woman stood up from the cloud she sat on, dusting her dress off.

"My name is Luce, Takeshi-kun. I am Byakuran's twin sister."

"Twin sister?" Takeshi yelped, staring at her. "How is that possible?"

Luce laughed. It sounded like wind chimes on a light breeze. "Of course it's possible, Takeshi-kun. Colonello is my dear nephew and I've been putting up with my brother's horrible acts for many years already. However, because of certain circumstances, I have been unable to find a way to stop him until now."

"What are you planning on doing?" Takeshi asked nervously. Anybody related to Byakuran, not matter how kind they appeared to be, had to have some hidden power of sorts up their sleeves, much like Colonello.

Luce sat back down and paused for a moment. "I think I should start from the beginning. Me and Byakuran's existence is a branch of divine force itself. Twins are not very common in the Spirit World. We represent light and dark, balance and imbalance, good and evil. It just so happened that Byakurna turned into a despicable being, while I triumphed over the darkness that tempted me. We maintain equality in this world. However, my brother has become obsessed with gaining power, in which he had clearly stepped over the boundaries by ruining a pure river spirit and destroying a skylark spirit as well."

Luce locked eyes with Takeshi and spoke in a calm, collected voice.

"You see, Takeshi-kun, you, as a river spirit, was a source of life to all the supernatural beings around you, including Hibari-kun. When Byakuran caused the oil spill into your waters, he created a mass unbalance in the cycle of our universe. Spirits that once ventured to your waters to purify themselves no longer had anywhere to go, leaving them in corruption and darkness. As an element of light, I need to fix that problem, which is why I'm here to help you."

"What can I do?" Takeshi asked hurriedly. "Can I help get Hibari's wings back?"

Luce blinked, and then a sad look crossed her face. "I'm afraid, Takeshi-kun, that it would be very difficult," she said quietly. "Spirits do not lose all of their powers if their home is destroyed, which is why you are still able to control water, like the way Hibari still has wings, but they are soaked in oil and are unable to fly. Byakuran has taken away too much control for the world to remain stable. Colonello is dying. Your friends are trapped in the spirit world, and are unable to leave."

"Can't I do anything to help?" Takeshi asked desperately now. He couldn't just stand around and do nothing.

Luce took a breath. "You can cleanse them with your water. You still have the ability as a river spirit to do so. However, your powers are no longer as strong as they would have been. You don't have your source of energy from your home anymore. If you attempt to save your friends, you have to give something up in return."

"What—oh…" Takeshi paused, realization dawning on him. Luce was right. In the world of balance, solutions did not come without a price. But he didn't have to think twice.

"I'll do it." He said firmly. Luce looked surprised. "I'll do it. I'll save my friends. No matter what."

Luce shook her head, a small grin of amusement on her face. "If you're sure. I think I knew what your answer would be from the beginning anyway." She stood up, and the white space rippled. The wind began to pick up around them once more.

"Oh, I almost forgot, silly me," Luce said suddenly. She reached into the folds of her dress and held out something small and smooth for Takeshi. "My farewell gift to you, Takeshi-kun," she said. "I wish you the best of luck."

"Thank you," Takeshi said, closing his hand around Luce's gift. "I know what I'm doing. I promise I'll save Colonello."

Luce brightened at that, and her eyes shimmered a little. She looked like she was crying. "I'd appreciate that very much, Takeshi-kun. Remember," she called out as the wind began to whirl around the teen, "once you've met somebody, you never really forget them. It just takes a little while to remember!"

Takeshi opened his mouth to reply, but at that moment, the ribbons wrapped around him again and he felt his feet part the floor in a swirl of light.

* * *

><p>He heard the sounds of the battle before he woke up again.<p>

He was on the bridge, breathing slowly. The pain in his shoulder was gone. He heard the sounds of metal against metal and something fell from the sky onto his nose.

A black feather.

Takeshi blinked hard and stared up above him. He was lying on his back, limps spread-eagled on the bridge. Hibari was fighting against Byakuran and Mukuro despite is injured state. The three of them were flying in the sky, one appearing and disappearing in a swirl of purple mist while the other flew with pure white wings. Hibari's wings were black, fluttering in the high afternoon sun, sending a whirl of feathers back down to earth. Takeshi clenched his fists and felt something in his palm. He turned his head to the side to see what Luce had given him.

It was a stone. A small, smooth stone, polished away by the river's currents. It was a tiny little thing that flashed different colours when it was held up against the light. Takeshi's mind swam. Light was a purifying element too.

Now he knew what to do. He sat up, hearing gasps from behind him. Lal, Reborn and Tsuna had been taking care of both his and Colonello's body as the battle raged on above.

"You're alive!" Tsuna shrieked.

"Impossible!" Lal stuttered. "You were dead a moment ago!"

Takeshi staggered slightly to his feet and clenched his fists. "I've got unfinished business with the owner of this bathhouse and his employee, that's all." He caught sight of Colonello lying limply against Lal's shoulder. He made a mental promise to make quick work of his enemies in the air and to help his friend as soon as possible.

The water was bubbling beneath the bridge again. Takeshi focused his thoughts on the one element of life that he had control over. _Knock them out of the skies_. The water did. Like geysers bursting out of the ground, two columns of water shot up into the sky like dragons, twisting and winding into complicated shapes before catching both Byakuran and Mukuro in its wrath and shot them both down. Takeshi watched them fall to earth, eyes narrowed in concentration. Mukuro reached to bridge first. As the blue-haired man hit the wooden surface, Takeshi darted forward and grabbed the pineapple. Mukuro's eyes widened as he immediately began to dissolve himself into mist to free himself from Takeshi's hold.

"You—"

Takeshi thrust snapped the little stone between his fingers and thrust his hand right in to the mass of purple mist. The light from the sun immediately refracted on the smooth sides of the stone. Mukuro choked and yelled in agony, as though the sunlight shining out from all the surfaces of the stone was poisoning him. He continued to writhe as the rays absorbed all the dark particles of mist until the blue-haired man was gone completely. The long trident fell with a _thunk_ on the bridge and vanished as well.

Takeshi turned to face his new enemy now. Byakuran had staggered to his feet, winded from the sudden blow but not yet defeated. His eyes narrowed when he saw that Mukuro was gone.

"So you weren't dead yet, boy." He snapped, raising his sword.

Takeshi risked a glance up into the sky. Hibari was hovering above him, feathers still drifting down. It was hard to tell what his expression was from so far away.

"Yup," Takeshi said. "Your big mistake is coming back to bite you from behind, Byakuran."

The white-haired man's eyes glowed dangerously as his face twisted into a look of pure hatred. He let out a roar of rage as he charged, blade held aloft. Takeshi braced himself, the thrill of the unexpected running through him. It was the feeling he'd felt every time he stood at the base, getting ready to hit a home run to save the game.

_Home. _

_Life._

_Friends._

Those were all the things he had to save now. Takeshi ducked as the first swing came his way. He caught Byakuran with a swift kick to the leg and the other leapt sideways to avoid falling. Takeshi turned on his heel and thrust his hand forward again. The stone touched Byakuran's chest and the man bellowed with rage. The light was hurting him, just like it had with Mukuro, but Byakuran was stronger. He wasn't disintegrating like the no-faced spirit had. He grabbed Takeshi's wrist in an attempt to pry the teen's hand away from him.

Takeshi closed his eyes and summoned the water once again with every last ounce of his concentration. The water bubbled up and crashed around them, turning into a giant sphere of water, trapping Byakuran inside with Takeshi. It was even bigger than the bubble he'd made around the Sins. The sunlight passed through the surface of the liquid, dancing like ribbons waving in the wind underwater. When they reached the stone, the light glowed like never before. Byakuran's yells were lost in the churning waters as the white-haired monster turned and tossed and slowly faded away forever.

The water washed away as Takeshi emerged from the bubble, panting hard. He felt shaky on his knees and he was pitching forwards when somebody caught him from behind to keep him from falling.

It was Hibari.

"You idiot," the raven said softly, holding tightly to the teen. "You've exhausted yourself, haven't you?"

Takeshi turned around and hugged Hibari close, feeling the soft wings on the shorter man's back. "For you, I definatly will." Hibari's cut had stopped bleeding all over the place now, but he had bruises and scrapes all over him. Takeshi took the skylark's hand and said softly, "We have to help Colonello. And free Reborn, Lal, and Tsuna. And I have to get your wings back."

A shadow passed over Hibari's face. "Takeshi…you can't." he whispered softly. Takeshi shook his head, tugging urgently on Hibari's hand now. "Come," he insisted softly. Hibari fell into step behind him as the baseball player ran over to where Colonello was. Lal looked up at him when he arrived.

"Please…" she whispered. "Please Takeshi. Help him. I remember now. I remember everything."

"What?" Takeshi asked, jaw dropping. Lal wiped her eyes, but her gaze was steady. "I remember everything about Colonello. All the memories that Byakuran erased, I remember now. Please. Save him…I love him. We need each other. Please, Takeshi."

"Can you do it?" Reborn asked quietly, and Takeshi heard a desperate note of hope in there. It hurt him to see his friends like this.

"Yes." He said firmly. "Yes, I can." With those words, he leaned over and placed the stone over the wound in Colonello's chest. A trickle of water gathered at his fingertips and washed over the blonde's chest. The blood vanished. The injury closed itself up, the skin glowing a little before the light faded away, leaving behind only a tear in Colonello's tank top. The blonde groaned a little, cracking open an eye. Takeshi had never been more relieved to see the baby blue orbs looking up at them all.

"Lal…? Reborn…? What's going on—oomph!"

Lal had thrown herself over Colonello, hugging him so tightly Takeshi swore he heard a rib break. "BAKA!" she yelled, sobbing in spite of herself. "Don't you ever scare me like that again!"

"Wha-what, kora?" Colonello wheezed, completely confused. He flailed his arms wildly, looking like a fish out of water. Reborn actually laughed, and Tsuna chuckled softly next to the Overseer, who'd thrown an arm around his lackey.

"She remembers, Colonello," Reborn hinted. "Everything's back to normal."

Colonello's jaw dropped. He stared at Takeshi, then looked at Hibari, and the over to Tsuna, as though he was waiting for somebody to contradict the fedora-wearing man. When Lal suddenly grabbed Colonello's face and kissed him full on the lips, the blonde's eyes filled with tears and he threw his arms around her, holding the woman he loved close for the first time in ten years.

Takeshi smiled and turned to Reborn and Tsuna. "I've got something that might help you guys too," he said lightly, holding the stone up again. This time, there was a little more water that rose up from the river again, which crashed over Tsuna and Reborn, dousing them thoroughly and soaking them to the skin. Tsuna spewed out a mouthful of water and gasped, "That's cold!"

Reborn shook water out of his eyes and frowned. "What the—" there was a warm glow, like sunshine, around the Overseer, who blinked before his eyes widened with an understanding.

"Damn…" he said softly. "To think I forgot something as important as that…I don't believe this…" he looked down at his hands before closing them into fists. Reborn turned to Takeshi, gratitude hidden in his eyes. "Thank you, Takeshi," he said quietly. "I remember now."

Takeshi smiled. Tsuna blinked as well, before he jumped to his feet and shrieked, "My name! My name! It's not Tsuna! I—" tears had welled up in his eyes too. "I remember now! Takeshi-kun! My name is Tsunayoshi." Tsuna hiccupped a little, tears spilling over his cheeks as he cried with happiness. "My name is Sawada Tsunayoshi…thank you, Takeshi-kun…thank you, thankyouthankyouthankyou—"

Reborn laughed and stood up too, hugging the boy he'd worked with for many years already. "Sawada Tsunayoshi," he said lightly. "That's a good name." Tsuna laughed, burying his face into Reborn's chest as he sobbed his heart out in joy.

"I can go home, Reborn! I can finally go home!"

Takeshi's face felt like splitting from smiling so widely. But he turned away to look at Hibari, who was watching the others with a quiet, sad sort of expression on his face. When he caught Takeshi looking at him, he huffed and turned away.

"Still a herbivore," Hibari said in good humor, poking Takeshi in the side. The teen chuckled, reaching out to grab Hibari's hand again.

"I haven't forgotten you, you know," he said softly, placing the stone between their entwined hands. "You're the one I want to save the most."

"Do you really think you can?" Hibari questioned quietly, looking behind him at the oil soaked feathers. He cast Takeshi a doubtful glance. Takeshi squeezed his hand in return.

"Trust me."

He could feel his power dwindling by now. It was like trying to remember something from far, far away. Once upon a time, it had been his name when Byakuran had stolen it away. Now, it was the power of the waves that had become harder to call. Luce had been right. In order to bring something back, something must be given up. Takeshi's purifying powers were slowly dying away because he had no home to go back to. The river was gone. It meant nothing to him now.

But Hibari did.

Takeshi focused the last of his strength on the water one last time. _Please, let this work_. The waves came up in a graceful arc before winding around the two of them, casing a small bubble. Hibari's eyes widened and he gasped, but he didn't choke. The water turned, running through each feather on the wings on the skylark's back, washing away the filthy oil that dissolved into nothing in the clean, sparkling water. Takeshi squeezed his eyes shut once, burning the image of Hibari standing with him underwater in him mind forever. Hibari was so beautiful.

"Hibari?"

"No."

"What?" Takeshi said in surprise, taken aback. Hibari smiled at him, and this time, it was a real smile. Takehi's heart skipped a beat. "My name is Kyoya. Hibari Kyoya."

Takeshi's face split into a wide grin as well, holding Hibari's hand tightly. "Hibari Kyoya," he repeated. "That's a beautiful name...ne, then, Kyoya?"

"What is it?"

Takeshi took a deep breath. "Don't get mad," he said softly, before leaning in to kiss Hibari underwater. It made his heart pound against his ribcage from the thrill…and the lack oxygen. It was time.

The raven seemed to realized what had happened, but it was too late. "Takeshi—!"

The water roared before soaring high into the air, crashing into the valley below and filling up the riverbed again. Takeshi collapsed into a heap against Hibari's chest, coughing and spitting out water. He heard his friends run up to him as well. Colonello thumped him on the back and yelled, "Geez whiz, kid! How on earth can you drown when you're a river spirit?"

"That's because he's not."

All heads turned to the speaker, who was standing at the end of the bridge with six other beaten, but battle-satisfied spirits. It was Xanxus and the Sins.

"Hiee? What do you mean?" Tsuna asked, confused. Xanxus grunted.

"It's a very balanced world, kid. To save you all, that idiot gave up his own powers for your freedom."

"What?" Lal thundered, spinning around to look at the teen. Takeshi chuckled weakly and scratched the back of his head. "Ehehehe, well, you see—"

"You idiot!"

"Takeshi! How could you!"

"Stupid brat, I'll get you, kora!"

Hibari grabbed Takeshi's wrist, glaring at him with his dark onyx eyes. Takeshi nearly quailed under the fierce gaze. "You're a human now," Hibari said quietly. Takeshi paused. "I guess…I am." He replied. Hibari's grip tightened before yanking the teen closer to him, bumping their foreheads together. Around them, Lal was yelling, Reborn and Colonello were setting up some sort of strategy to blow Takeshi to kingdom come for sacrificing so much of himself for his friends while Tsuna tried to thwart their plan. But seeing Lal hold hands tightly with Colonello, Reborn sling an arm around Tsuna's shoulders to pull him in, Xanxus giving him a knowing smirk before dissolving into nothing with the rest of his noisy Sins, Takeshi regretted nothing. And he knew that his friends sooner or later anyway. Right now, all he cared about was the skylark standing right in front of him, absentmindedly weaving his thin fingers between Takeshi's.

"Tell me."

"Tell you what?"

A light punch came to his gut. "Your real name, baka. What kind of a boyfriend would I be if I didn't even know your name?"

Takeshi's breath hitched in his throat and he closed his eyes. Somehow, it had come back to him. If he didn't feel Hibari's hand tightening around his own, just as nervous as he was, he'd have said he was still dreaming in the Spirit World.

"It's Yamamoto. My name is Yamamoto Takeshi."

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><p>Chapter 8 is done! This. Was. A. Very long chapter. By my standards. I am dead tired right now. I hope the battle wasn't too complicated D: I'd hate to ruin the story with too many run ons. But in the end, I think I did anyway, simply because I wanted to give all the lovebirds a chance to shine in this chapter. I didn't go through with killing anybody, mainly because I was threate- <em>too sad<em> to do so, although the one thing I do regret doing is making Mukuro into such a terrible person. I've actually always felt bad for him. Nobody trusts the pineapple in the manga/anime and he's being blasted away but a magical stone in this story too. But anyway~

Thank you for reading! This is technically the last chapter. However, there is and epilogue following this chapter. So! Onto Chapter 9 then, the real ending of this story! (P.S. I'll love you forever if you reviewed this~)

-BlackStar


	9. Epilogue

One Summer's Day

Hello guys, I think it's safe to say that we've reached the end of the story. The Spirit World Arc ended with Chapter 8, but just to wrap things up with a lot of herbivores, kora!'s and romance, here is the epilogue of One Summer's Day. So, here we go—!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Katekyo Hitman Reborn. Any similarities in events or characters living or dead are entirely coincidental.

Enjoy!

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><p>Epilogue<p>

Yamamoto stared at the giant brick building in front of him, frowning slightly. There just _had_ to be a mistake. There was no way this could be it. The building was tall and industrial, the walls a stony gray with small windows that had blinds drawn so low that it didn't even look like there were any windows at all. It looked awkward and unwelcoming and positively dull. Yamamoto scratched the back of his head as he unfolded the piece of paper tucked into his pocket. Scrawled messily in blunt pencil lead was an address:

_Varia Studios  
>Cedef Road<br>#18, 3__rd__ floor  
>Namimori Town<em>

"Damn!" Yamamoto exclaimed in surprise, staring at the piece of paper. He was one block ahead of where he should be, thinking that it said _Cedar Road_ and not _Cedef Road_. Curses. When was he going to get his directions right? He was now stuck with a giant rucksack slung over his shoulder, a rented car packed to the roof with moving boxes on low gas, and—

"What on earth are you doing?"

Yamamoto spun around and laughed weakly as Hibari walked up behind him, looking crossly at the building he was standing in front of. The raven blinked once, blinked again, frowned and mussed up his already untidy hair from sleeping in the car before saying, "You got off a block early, didn't you?"

"Ne, Kyoya, you know me so well!"

"Baka," Hibari said lightly, smacking Yamamoto on the back of the head. "Get back in the car, I'll drive this time. I don't need you wasting gas and stranding us in the middle of nowhere when we're so close to the place."

"So mean~" Yamamoto said, sweatdropping a little before getting into the passenger seat of the compact car. Hibari snorted in amusement before starting the engine again and pulling out of the parking lot. Yamamoto rolled down the window and let the air flow in. The weather was nice today. There was a perfect combination of sun and clouds with a little wind to fluff the leaves around on the trees to create a pleasant, end-of-summer sound. It had been raining several days ago, so the grass was lush and green but not damp at all. It would be a wonderful time for a picnic, when the two young adults had the time for it.

It had been five years since Yamamoto had wandered into the Spirit World. Two chaotic weeks in there, after he'd been hit by a tonfa more times than he could count, met weird but awesome new friends, battled the world's most villainous demon and its accomplice and nearly lost his name for good (not to mention managing to find his 'soul mate' in the middle of the mess) Yamamoto finally found his way back out into the Human Realm to find that two weeks had indeed passed by. It was a very complicated situation where the police had gotten involved, he'd nearly lost his placement in the University, his father had been worried sick and Yamamoto had to make up a story about getting lost in the forest, because really, nobody just goes missing for a week and tells the authorities they ended up in another world.

Yamamoto had moved on. He continued to study at the Namimori University in Tokyo. When he left the Spirit World, he had been alone. Hibari hadn't come with him then, saying that he had still things to do in his long absence. Neither Lal nor Colonello had left either, both of them deciding to reconstruct a better bathhouse out of the remains of Byakuran's old one. From what Takeshi gathered, the two of them were more than happy with their current lifestyle, both very much in love and content with simply spending their days with each other.

Tsuna, on the other hand, was a real human from the beginning and didn't belong in the Spirit World in any case, but when he went back home, he decided that he wasn't going to find his parents. He had been missing for too long and it would be far too difficult to explain where he'd come back from, and how. It saddened the brunette greatly, but he, too, had moved on, thanks to Reborn, who had no interest in staying at his old workplace and with the 'annoying lovebirds', and had moved in with Tsuna. The two of them now lived in a comfortable flat in Tokyo, where Tsuna had gotten a job as a florist downtown and Reborn became a bartender. When he had been studying, Yamamoto often visited them, dropping by to eat dinner with his friends or catch a movie when he wasn't busy. It made him less lonely at times, having something else to occupy his mind with other than Hibari. Reborn and Tsuna probably knew, but they never said anything about it. Yamamoto had a feeling it was their way of repaying him back for freeing them from the Spirit World.

He didn't feel very different being a human. Yamamoto had spent most of his life living as one, so he had no trouble adjusting at all. But sometimes, he'd feel a little empty on the inside, like something was missing from him. It was a strange feeling, but Yamamoto never had any regrets. From the beginning of the choice he'd made with Luce until now, he never once felt that he would have gone by any other method to save his friends. Then, after four years in the Human Realm, his life began to turn around.

"Hey, are you sleeping? Get up, we're there."

"Eh, alreay?"

"Yes, silly."

Hibari came back.

It was the middle of the night, around nine in the evening when Yamamoto heard somebody knocking on his door in the residence he was staying at. Thinking it was probably one of his classmates asking for notes, he'd gotten up to answer, only to find the raven standing at his threshold, hands in his jacket pockets and a small smile on his face. Yamamoto swore that was the closest thing to a heart attack he'd ever experienced at twenty-three.

"Hn, this is a nice place."

"It is, isn't it?"

Now, a year later, after Yamamoto had finished school and had gotten a job placement as a sports instructor for children's day camps at a nearby town, he and Hibari had finally decided to move in together at a place of Yamamoto's choosing. It was an art studio with the top three floors converted to modest flats that were cheap but comfy. Hibari parked the car at the small parking space and looked up at the building, which was a smooth, teal colour and had a wide entrance with posters hung up everywhere. It had a pleasant and upbeat atmosphere.

"Get our stuff in before it gets dark, Takeshi."

"Maa, maa, Kyoya-chan, help me out too~"

"You're such an idiot at times."

They spent the rest of the afternoon unloading their things into their flat. It was a nice place with a small kitchen, a sitting area, a balcony, a bathroom and a bedroom. Boxes piled up everywhere as the two of them brought the last of their things in. Considering that Yamamoto was only moving his dorm supplies in and Hibari virtually had nothing more than a suitcase of clothes and a duffle bag of personal items, there was nothing hefty left to move anymore. Hibari drove the wheezing car down to the gas station for a fill while Yamamoto dug through his mini fridge for something to cook.

Three hours later, after cooking and unpacking and dishwashing and showering, the two of them were curled up on the giant futon together, reading from a novel while munching on the last of the sushi and onigrini. The sun was setting outside now. The little town was much quieter than the city, which was something Yamamoto had a feeling Hibari liked more. The raven had never shown much interest to the hustle and bustle of the city life, and moving closer to the countryside was definatly the right thing to do. Hibari yawned and turned the page, moving the reading lamp closer. Yamamoto wrapped an arm around his boyfriend, rubbing his arm affectionately.

"Are you tired? Let's go to sleep early today."

"But I'm almost done the chapter," Hibari grumbled. Yamamoto chuckled, tugging the book away.

"Sleep now. We'll finish it tomorrow."

Hibari jabbed him sharply in the ribs in retaliation before walking over to the bathroom to wash his face while Yamamoto rolled around, trying to catch his breath.

"You're such a weirdo. Stop crowding onto my pillow, Takeshi."

Yamamoto grinned up at the skylark, holding his arms open. The raven rolled his eyes but crawled over all the same, tucking his head under Yamamoto's chin and wound his arms around the taller man's waist. Yamamoto pulled the blanket up around them and turned off the light. The room was dark now, save for the warm glow cast by the street lamp across the road. The light peeking through the crack in the curtain reminded Yamamoto of the boiler room, and how Colonello used to hang up the blankets and shades to stop the afternoon sun from coming in while they slept. It felt like a million years away.

"You're thinking too much," Hibari mumbled against his chest.

"How would you know?" Yamamoto questioned. Hibari tilted his head up to gaze silently into Yamamoto's eyes.

"When you think too much, your heartbeat changes. It does when you sleep, too, or when you're watching television or reading something interesting in the books."

Yamamoto chuckled. "I didn't know you could hear my heart beat so clearly."

"Idiot," Hibari said, smacking his arm. "Don't say it like that; it sounds like some stupid romantic shit female herbivores like to squeal about."

Yamamoto didn't answer. He pushed himself up so that he was resting on his elbows over Hibari. He leaned in and nuzzled the skylark's neck, inhaling a light scent of fresh air, peppermint, sleep, and something simply Hibari. The raven reached up to tangle his hands in Yamamoto's hair, pulling him down for a kiss. Their tongues brushed against each other's, mapping out the well-known territory and deepened the kiss. It was sweet and gentle, which made Yamamoto think that perhaps Hibari had mellowed out over the years. A quick bite to his lip immediately corrected that thought. Yamamoto grinned.

_That's the Kyoya I know_.

For the two of them, there was nothing in their world that night other than the fridge humming in the kitchen, the leaky faucet in the sink dripping occasionally, the cool breeze drifting through the window. They were finally together, after parting in cruel sadness, being reunited in the world's best coincidence and coming to love each other forever; all because of that one summer's day.

_End_

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><p>It's done. It's finally done. Nine chapters of 8018, marshmallows and frogs and pineapples and tuna fish…and it's done. I must admit that I am kind of sad…I liked this series a lot ^^" it's the second one I've written and the longest chapter story so far…so hooray, I've accomplished my goal!<p>

But in all seriousness, thank you so very much for reading and keeping up with me. It's the first time I've actually kept the story going instead of going on a six month mind block vacation from writing, and all the reviews and comments were wonderful forms of encouragement. I promise to keep writing! And hopefully, you'll like the other stories I write later on. Thank you for reading!

Love,

BlackStar


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